North Korea has declared its intention to build a third 5,000-ton destroyer by October 10 next year.
According to a front-page report in Rodong Sinmun, the Workers’ Party newspaper, on Tuesday, officials from the Nampo Shipyard held a rally on the previous day, committing to construct the third Choe Hyon-class destroyer by the party’s founding anniversary on October 10 2026. The article was titled “Let’s Faithfully Support Our Party’s Military Power-Building Line by Constructing New Ships with All Our Might.”
The event was attended by Party Secretary Jo Chun Ryong, who is in charge of military affairs, Yoon Chi Gul, the manager of the Nampo Shipyard, as well as other officials, workers, and engineers from the shipbuilding sector. The newspaper reported that resounding cheers echoed as the era of General Secretary Kim Jong Un approached, heralding a new golden age of strengthening the navy’s indigenous capabilities.
On page two, the paper reflected on the 59th anniversary of the Victory Day celebrations in 2012. It recounted that the General Secretary, during a meeting with workers, discussed the idea of celebrating July 27 as a holiday for victors, and he provided guidance to establish an annual tradition of inviting war veteran representatives to Pyongyang for grand Victory Day celebrations.
The third page highlighted that this year marks the final year of the Five-Year National Economic Development Plan proposed at the 8th Party Congress, emphasizing that the current challenging reality underscores the sacred duty of party members to fully support the Central Committee’s intentions and plans from the forefront of the struggle.
The fourth page featured profiles of socialist patriotic contributors, including the manager of the Jang Deok Mine, the manager of the Sinyang Veterans’ Herbal Medicine Factory, workers from the Najin Veterans’ Daily Necessities Factory, the director of the South Hamgyong Province Postal Management Bureau, and the head of the Industrial Arts Department at Pyongyang University of Fine Arts.
On page five, workers producing coal at the Namyang Coal Mine were showcased, highlighting the importance of increasing coal production. The newspaper urged to sincerely and actively support the coal front to significantly contribute to increasing coal production, which is the lifeblood of industry.
The sixth page also featured an article aimed at instilling patriotism ahead of Victory Day. The newspaper asserted that there has never been a war in whicha young, clean nation faced and defeated a formidable enemy that has never lost in over 100 years of invasion wars, armed with the world’s most advanced weapons and commanding numerous follower nations.