Major accident reported at N. Korea warship launch

Kim Jong Un calls incident a criminal act; operational carelessness cited as factor

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SEOUL - A major accident occurred at a launch ceremony for a North Korean naval destroyer, state media reported on May 22, with leader Kim Jong Un saying the incident was a "criminal act".

At a ceremony to launch a 5,000-ton destroyer in the eastern port city of Chongjin on May 22, "a serious accident occurred", the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

South Korea's military said North Korea also fired "multiple unidentified cruise missiles" on May 22, which were detected near the North's South Hamgyong province after being "fired towards the East Sea", also known as the Sea of Japan.

Blaming "inexperienced command and operational carelessness" during the launch, which was observed by Mr Kim, KCNA said there was an incident which left "some sections of the warship's bottom crushed". It said the accident managed to "destroy the balance of the warship".

Mr Kim watched the entire incident and declared it a "criminal act caused by absolute carelessness", warning it "could not be tolerated".

He said the "irresponsible errors" of officials responsible would be "dealt with at the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee to be convened next month".