North Korea has moved a new warship damaged in a botched launch to a port near the Russian border, a move analysts say could point to a role for Moscow in repairing the vessel. <\/p>\n
Satellite images taken Sunday by Maxar Technologies show the 5,000-ton destroyer, as yet unnamed, in a drydock in the port of Rajin, part of North Korea\u2019s Rason special economic zone, which abuts its short border with Russia. <\/p>\n
While not a major shipbuilding facility like the shipyard in the northeastern city of Chongjin where the launching accident occurred, Rajin has facilities for modest repairs and maintenance, said Yu Jihoon, director of external cooperation and an associate research fellow at Korea Institute for Defense Analyses. <\/p>\n
And its proximity to Russia \u201cmakes it a key node for North Korea\u2019s efforts to deepen economic and potentially military ties with Moscow,\u201d Yu said. <\/p>\n
A 2024 report from the Modern War Institute at West Point, the United States Military Academy, calls the Rason economic zone \u201ca significant point of North Korea\u2013Russia cooperation, recently implicated in North Korean arms shipments to Russia for use in Ukraine.\u201d <\/p>\n
The warship was damaged on May 21, when during its launch the stern went into the water but the bow stayed stuck on land. The ship turned on its side in the botched maneuver. <\/p>\n
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who attended the launching ceremony, ordered the destroyer to be repaired by the late-June plenary session of the ruling Workers\u2019 Party, calling it a matter of national honor. <\/p>\n
State media reported last week repairs at the Rajin drydock would take seven to 10 days, meeting Kim\u2019s timeline. <\/p>\n
Kim said it\u2019s possible the ship\u2019s sonar and depth finders, located on the bow section, were damaged during the botched launch. <\/p>\n
Such damage would likely require foreign help to repair, he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cNorth Korea is believed to lack the technology for sonar systems, so they likely imported them from China or Russia,\u201d Kim said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThe vessel\u2019s external damage doesn\u2019t seem significant, and the main issue seems to be the water flooding into the warship\u201d was the assessment of the South Korean military, Yu said. <\/p>\n
Internal spaces of the ship, as well as machinery and electronics, will have to be purged of sea water and dried salt in the repair process, analysts said. <\/p>\n
Yu said Russian assistance in the repair process was a possibility, but it would be difficult to verify if it only involved engineers and not the movement of major pieces of equipment. <\/p>\n
North Korea is believed to have sent millions of munitions, including missiles and rockets, to Russia over the past year, according to watchdog the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team. <\/p>\n
In return, Russia has provided North Korea with valuable weapons technologies, including air defense equipment, anti-aircraft missiles and electronic warfare systems as well as refined oil, the watchdog said last month. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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