Kim Jong-un and his daughter have launched a new warship armed with “the most powerful weapons”, North Korean state media said on Saturday.

It came one month after the dictator oversaw a test of AI-guided reconnaissance and “suicide” drones, adding to concern that North Korea is deepening its military co-operation with Russia.

The Choe Hyon, named after a late North Korean anti-Japanese fighter, is a 5,000-ton destroyer-class vessel that took more than a year to build, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

Given its size, experts believe the ship can carry both ship-to-surface and ship-to-air missiles, with specialist outlet NK News reporting it was “likely to be equipped with short-range tactical nuclear missiles”.

The North Korean navy can now serve as a “core service for national defence and a component of nuclear war deterrent”, Kim said, according to KCNA, adding that the ship would “enter into operation early next year”.