"Repair Period May Vary Depending on Changes to the Keel"
It has been confirmed that North Korea's new 5,000-ton-class destroyer, which toppled over during its launching process on May 21, was set upright this week.
At a regular briefing by the Ministry of National Defense on June 5, Lee Sungjun, spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, stated, "We have confirmed that the North Korean vessel, which had been tilted at Chongjin Port, was set upright earlier this week," adding, "The South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities are closely monitoring the area around Chongjin Port and related activities."
Regarding this, Lee said, "I understand that some additional work is currently underway," and added, "Since the (stranded) vessel was submerged, they are likely carrying out water removal operations. We believe they are also conducting activities to address the issues pointed out by North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong Un."
Earlier, immediately after the accident, Chairman Kim had ordered the destroyer to be restored before the plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea this month. Korean Central News Agency also reported that it would take two to three days to remove seawater from the toppled destroyer, and about ten days to repair the side of the hull.
When asked whether such hull restoration work could be completed in about ten days, the military responded, "The details and duration of repairs could change depending on whether there are internal repairs, additional work, or any changes to the keel, and this could also affect future use of the vessel," adding, "More time and analysis will be needed to determine the specifics."
Regarding external analysis suggesting that North Korea used buoyancy devices similar to balloons to set the hull upright, Lee said, "The weight that balloons can support is not very large, so it is restored using cranes or other forces," and added, "While it is difficult to say for certain, we believe it is possible that the buoyancy of balloons was used as an auxiliary means to set the vessel upright, or to float other objects or assist in related operations."
Meanwhile, 38 North, a media outlet specializing in North Korea, reported on June 3 (local time) that commercial satellite images taken on June 2 showed the toppled 5,000-ton-class destroyer had been set upright. This comes about two weeks after the grounding incident. The outlet assessed that the work to set the ship upright appeared to have been done manually. Satellite images taken on May 29 reportedly showed workers on the pier pulling ropes that appeared to be connected to the ship.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
