| |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | 1977-2014 Chong Chon Gang 2014-present Tong Hung San |
| Namesake | Ch'ongch'on River |
| Owner | Chongchongang Shipping (2013) |
| Operator | Chongchongang Shipping (2013) |
| Port of registry | Nampo,  North Korea |
| Builder | Nampo Shipyard |
| In service | 1977 |
| Identification | IMO number: 7937317 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | General cargo ship |
| Tonnage | 9,147 GT |
| Length | 155 m (509 ft) |
| Beam | 20 m (66 ft) |
| Draft | 8.9 m (29 ft) |
| Crew | 35 |
Chong Chon Gang (Korean: 청천강호; Hanja: 淸川江號[1]) is a North Korean cargo ship, later renamed the Tong Hung San.
The 155 m (509 ft) general cargo ship was built in 1977[2] in Nampo. Its owner is listed as Chongchongang Shipping of Pyongyang.[3] Chongchongang Shipping may be a front company answering to "Office #39" (otherwise known as the Central Committee Bureau 39) of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), which is responsible for state-sanctioned illicit activities such as the smuggling of prohibited items including weapons and luxury goods. Office #39 was created in 1974 as a department-level organization within the WPK Secretariat under the WPK Central Committee. According to a study published by the US Strategic Studies Institute, its primary role was and still is engaging in illegal activities in order to generate hard currency for the North Korean government.[4]
- ^ "パナマ大統領「北朝鮮の船舶からミサイル部品押収」" ["Missile parts seized from ships of North Korea" Panama President]. Joong-Ang Il-bo (in Japanese). 17 July 2013.
- ^ "Chong Chon Gang: North Korean-flagship with missile". Convenient Flags. 16 July 2013.
- ^ "Chong Chon Gang". Maritime Connector. Archived from the original on 19 July 2013. Retrieved 16 July 2013.
- ^ Kan, Paul Rexton; Bechtol, Bruce E. Jr.; Collins, Robert M. (March 2010). "Criminal Sovereignty: Understanding North Korea's Illicit International Activities" (PDF). Strategic Studies Institute. U.S. Army War College. Archived (PDF) from the original on September 23, 2013.