North Korea's Weird New Navy - New Destroyers & A North Korean Blue Water Navy?

When you think of naval powers, North Korea probably isn't at the top of your list...and frankly given the state of their naval forces for the last seventy years it shouldn't be. But now the DPRK apparently has ambitions to nuclear-armed, Blue Water navy status, and it's pouring funding into subs and surface combatants to try and get there. So today, let's talk about North Korea's weird new navy. Patreon:   / perunau   Reading and Sourcing (partial): Reporting on the Commissioning of the Choe Hyon (Hull 51) https://news.usni.org/2026/06/24/nort... https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/... https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/... Reporting on the Kang Kon (Hull 52) testing https://militarnyi.com/en/news/north-... https://www.reuters.com/business/aero... Equipment changes (2025) https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/... DPRK to build two warships a year for the next five years - Kim says https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pa... DPRK ambition to build 10,000 tonne warship https://www.france24.com/en/live-news... Reporting - North Korea Says It Has Deployed Cruise Missiles Able to Carry Tactical Nuclear Weapons (2022) https://www.voanews.com/a/north-korea... Footage Source - Kim Jong Un Inspecting the Choe Hyon    • 김정은동지께서 구축함《최현》호를 방문하시고 취역을 앞두고 진행중인 함의 작전...     / north_koreas_ddg51_choe_hyon_during_yester...   RAND - Shared Modular Build of Warships (2011) https://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand... Additional images: https://m.en.freshnewsasia.com/index.... Reporting on Russian payments to DPRK for assistance in war with Ukraine https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/0... FREMM interior shot https://www.defensenews.com/naval/201... North Korean Nuclear Powered Submarine Program reporting https://www.csis.org/analysis/north-k... https://www.38north.org/2025/11/russi... https://edition.cnn.com/2025/12/24/as... Caveats & Comments: Nothing in this episode should be taken to represent an opinion or advice on any legal matter, including with regards to the potential application of domestic or international law to any of the events described or alluded to. All normal caveats and comments apply. In particular – I would like to note as always that this material has been created for entertainment purposes and is not intended to be a complete or comprehensive examination of the topic in question and should not be relied upon to inform financial or other similar decisions. Any content relating to the conduct, views, activities or any aspect of any person or character in this video is included for entertainment purposes and does not represent an assertion of fact on those matters or any matters in relation to that person or character. Care has been taken in compiling data, quotes, and other inputs from various sources but errors can occur. Quotes and included data should be considered illustrative, not definitive and their veracity should not be relied on. Timestamps: 00:00:00 — Intro 00:01:19 — What Am I Talking About? 00:01:49 — Welcome Back to North Korea 00:04:37 — the KPAN 00:09:55 — Changing Tides 00:16:16 — the Ship 00:21:54 — the Weird 00:33:09 — Why Tho? 00:51:14 — Strategic Perspective 00:54:49 — Channel Update