North Korea tends to time its military projects for maximum effect, and leader Kim Jong Un’s latest inspections of the country’s premier naval industries were no exception, signaling that the mid-2020s will bring significant changes to the DPRK navy’s traditional roles.

The two frigates that Kim examined, one on each coast, have received an unusual degree of coverage since their relatively recent initiation. The supreme leader has made at least four separate visits to inspect them, and satellite imagery and news commentary have provided a fairly clear picture of what their intended roles