SpaceWar.com - Your World At War
South Korea commissions first SLBM submarine
Seoul, Aug 13 (AFP) Aug 13, 2021
South Korea's Navy received its first ballistic-missile-capable submarine on Friday to counter the threat of underwater missiles from the nuclear-armed North.

Pyongyang has been developing submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) technology for years.

It showed off four such devices at a military parade overseen by leader Kim Jong Un in January, with state media KCNA calling them "the world's most powerful weapon".

Days earlier, Kim told a congress of his ruling Workers' Party that the North had completed plans for a nuclear submarine.

Any such vessel is likely to be years away from going into service, but analysts say it could be a strategic game-changer, enabling Pyongyang to launch a surprise strike underwater even if its land-based forces had been destroyed.

The South held the commissioning ceremony for its indigenously-developed, diesel-powered 3,000-ton submarine on the southern island of Geoje, the Navy said in a press release.

The vessel was named after revered independence activist Ahn Chang-ho and Rear Admiral Yang Yong-mo described it as a strategic asset that "will firmly defend our seas and its mere existence will strike fear" into the enemy.

The latest addition to the submarine fleet is 83.5 metres (274 feet) long and 9.6 metres (31 feet) wide and can stay underwater for 20 days without surfacing.

It reportedly comes with six vertical launching tubes to fire SLBMs.

Defence authorities plan to deploy it by August next year after a year-long evaluation.

The North is also looking to enhance its submarine forces.

Leader Kim inspected a newly built submarine in 2019, when pictures showed him standing next to a gigantic vessel accompanied by officials.

State media said it would soon be deployed for operations, without giving details of its capabilities.

Friday's commissioning ceremony came after Pyongyang slammed Seoul for going ahead with joint military exercise with the US.

Washington stations around 28,500 troops in the South to help defend it against its neighbour, which invaded in 1950, sparking the Korean War.

The US and South Korean militaries began their preliminary training Tuesday in the run-up to next week's yearly summertime exercise.

Pyongyang considers the drills a rehearsal for invasion and regularly condemns them.


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Starship tumbles back to Ocean after reaching a nominal orbit
Czech Republic eyes astronaut mission through Axiom Space collaboration
Politecnico di Milano to help chart Apophis asteroid during 2028 deep space mission

24/7 Energy News Coverage
Seoul's power giant pushes back on EU probe into Czech nuclear bid
Nuclear option: Indonesia seeks to grow energy, cut emissions
Microsoft AI weather forecast faster, cheaper, truer: study

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
North Korea says US missile shield plans risk 'nuclear war' in space
NATO head expects members to agree to spend 5% GDP on defense
Israel military says intercepted two projectiles fired from Yemen

24/7 News Coverage
Overlooked cells might explain the human brain's huge storage capacity
AI constellation to monitor UK water networks with Quub tech
Along Ghana's vanishing coast, climate change swallows history, homes



All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.