North Korea has officially commissioned its new 5,000-ton destroyer “Kang Gon“, which will become part of the state's nuclear countermeasure system. This happened at an official ceremony in the eastern port of Wonsan, held on September 6, 2026. The event was attended by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accompanied by his wife Ri Sol Ju and daughter Kim Ju Ae. The appearance of the new nuclear shield coincides with the large-scale joint military exercises “Freedom Edge“, conducted by South Korea, the United States and Japan.
Revival after an accident and a new milestone for Navy
The destroyer “Kang Gon“ is the second ship of the modernized “Chwe Heng“ class. However, its path to combat duty was marked by a serious incident. During the initial launch attempt in May last year, the vessel suffered an accident, tilted to one side and partially sank near the shipyard in Chongjin. At the time, Kim Jong Un described the incident as the result of “criminal negligence“ and initiated the arrests of the responsible engineers.
After extensive repairs and successful tests in July this year, during which strategic cruise missiles were launched, the ship has proven its combat capability. Kim Jong Un announced that the country's Navy is entering a completely new stage of development and is becoming a “nuclear-armed fleet“.
Integration into nuclear response and geopolitical tension
According to information from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), “Kang Gon“ will be assigned to the country's Eastern Fleet. Its main task will be to act as a deterrent within the state nuclear response system. The leader of the DPRK emphasized that the ship is capable of delivering “crushing counterattacks“ against enemies if necessary.
The commissioning of the destroyer sends a clear signal to Pyongyang's regional adversaries. At this very moment, South Korea, the United States and Japan launched their five-day “Freedom Edge“ exercises in international waters south of Jeju Island, aimed specifically at countering the nuclear threat from North Korea.