In a rare public admission of failure, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un described the accident involving the 5,000-ton destroyer as a “criminal act.”

A major accident occurred at the launch ceremony for a new North Korean naval destroyer, state media reported Thursday, with leader Kim Jong Un calling the mishap a "criminal act".

Just two weeks ago, Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un oversaw previous missile launches off his country's east coast, sending projectiles 500 miles into the Sea of Japan with the aim of showing North Korea's military preparedness, as well as testing out some new hardware.