North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was depicted on North Korean state media inspecting a newly built submarine.

The North's Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) reported on Tuesday that Kim inspected the new submarine and viewed its tactical capabilities and weapons systems.

KCNA said Kim responded positively to the vessel and cited him as saying that the operational capability of submarines is an important component of national defense.

The report said the submarine will be operational in the East Sea, but did not mention the kind of weapons systems the submarine contained or when the inspection took place.

Last month, U.S.-based North Korea monitoring website 38 North assessed that the Kim regime is constructing what may be a Sinpo-class ballistic missile submarine. 

The North is known to have one other such vessel in service. In 2016 it launched a ballistic missile from the submarine in waters near its east coast, flying some 500 kilometers towards Japan.