The Russian merchant ship Ursa Major, which sank in the Mediterranean Sea in late December, was believed to be carrying two nuclear reactors for North Korean submarines. CNN reported this on May 12 in an investigation.
The ship encountered a series of explosions and sank under unclear circumstances off the coast of Spain. As CNN notes, the “Western military” may be behind this in order to prevent Russia from transferring the latest nuclear technologies to the DPRK.
The ship sailed just two months after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sent the military to help Moscow invade Ukraine, the media noted.
The recent flurry of military activity surrounding the wreck has deepened the mystery surrounding its cargo and destination, the media writes.
U.S. reconnaissance planes to detect radioactive particles in the atmosphere have flown over the wreck twice in the past year, according to public flight records. And a week after the sinking, a Russian reconnaissance vessel sailed to the wreckage of the ship, which, according to CNN, provoked four more explosions.
The ship's Russian captain told Spanish investigators that the Ursa Major was carrying “components for two nuclear reactors similar to those used on submarines” and that he was not sure whether they were loaded with nuclear fuel.
The sequence of events that led to the sinking of the ship remains unknown, writes CNN. Spanish investigators believe that a high-speed type of torpedo, the Barracuda, was probably used for the strike.
A hole measuring 50 cm by 50 cm was found in the ship’s hull; the damaged metal was turned inside, said the Oboronlogistics company, which owned the ship.
Only the United States, several NATO member countries, Russia and Iran are believed to possess such torpedoes.
Mike Plunkett, a senior naval platform analyst at Janes, said if the ship had nuclear reactors, “that's a big step on Moscow's part.” He described any such development as “potentially very worrying, especially for South Korea.”
