North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for his country to achieve “absolute superiority” in drone technology and prioritise artificial intelligence in unmanned weapons systems as tensions with South Korea intensify.
Kim made the demands during an exhibition and demonstration of unmanned aeronautical technology, according to North Korean state news agency KCNA on Friday.
The weapons demonstration featured tactical suicide attack drones, tactical cruise missiles, multipurpose drones and 600mm multiple rocket launchers.
The exhibition highlighted Kim’s efforts to modernise North Korea’s armed forces through drones and artificial intelligence, drawing lessons from Russia’s war against Ukraine and other global conflicts.
It came amid heightened tensions between the two Koreas, with Seoul vowing to respond firmly to what it described as North Korean border violations, while Pyongyang condemned joint South Korea-US air defence drills.
Photographs released by KCNA showed unmanned aerial vehicles bearing the North Korean Air Force’s emblem at the exhibition attended by Kim.
Other images showed what appeared to be a drone crashing into a military vehicle and exploding in a ball of flame during a weapons demonstration.
South Korea’s military said on Thursday that North Korea had fired around 10 projectiles, including short-range ballistic missiles.
Kim said achieving superiority in drone technology was “an indispensable option” given the changing nature of modern warfare, according to KCNA.
He also said the use of advanced artificial intelligence in unmanned weapons systems should be a top priority for North Korea.
Kim has repeatedly called for the development of drones and military AI.
North Korean state media reported that he ordered the mass production of suicide attack drones in November 2024.
He also oversaw tests of AI-equipped drones in March 2025 and, in September 2025, identified artificial intelligence as a top priority in weapons modernisation.
Since October 2024, North Korea has sent more than 16,000 personnel to Russia to support Moscow’s war against Ukraine, according to South Korean intelligence.
The deployment has reportedly provided North Korean forces with battlefield experience in drone operations, electronic warfare and combined-arms warfare.
North Korea is transforming its military through drones and artificial intelligence, drawing lessons from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, said Lim Eul-chul, a professor at South Korea’s Kyungnam University.
Lim said the comprehensive weapons display was intended to “shut off the possibility of dialogue or negotiations” with South Korea.
North Korean state media also displayed for the first time what analysts described as a tailless, flying-wing stealth drone.
Photographs showed racks of small suicide drones and loitering munitions resembling the US Switchblade 600.
Analysts said the display suggested North Korea was prioritising inexpensive, mass-produced weapons, potentially drawing lessons from the war in Ukraine.
Mock targets resembling South Korean K9 howitzers, M1 Abrams-type tanks and radar vehicles suggested the weapons were intended for use against South Korean and US forces, they said.
South Korea’s national security adviser Wi Sung-lac said on Friday that Seoul would respond firmly to protect its military border despite Pyongyang’s assertion that its operations were taking place within its own territory.
Separately, North Korea’s Defence Ministry condemned US and South Korean air defence drills, saying they were increasing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.
The ministry said there was “no limit” to North Korea’s options for maintaining a strong deterrent posture, KCNA reported.
Tensions have increased following a landmine explosion inside the Demilitarised Zone last month that seriously wounded South Korean soldiers.
Seoul blamed the explosion on a North Korean mine, an allegation Pyongyang has denied.
Kim’s powerful sister, Kim Yo Jong, also said earlier this month that North Korea would activate anti-South Korean propaganda loudspeakers along its entire border by the end of October.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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