North Korea Tests New AI-Equipped Suicide Drones (X image @AlexBarnicoat_)

Pyongyang, North Korea: North Korea tests new AI-equipped suicide and reconnaissance drones and called for unmanned aircraft and artificial intelligence to be prioritised in military modernisation plans of the country. Reportedly, the country’s President Kim Jong UN has personally supervised the testing of new AI-equipped drones. The state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said on Thursday that Kim oversaw the testing of “various kinds of reconnaissance and suicide drones”, produced by North Korea’s Unmanned Aerial Technology Complex.

The leader agreed to expand the production capacity of “unmanned equipment and artificial intelligence” and emphasised the importance of creating a long-term plan for North Korea to promote “the rapid development” of “intelligent drones”, which is “the trend of modern warfare”.

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Pictures taken during the tests were said to show attack drones successfully striking targets, including military vehicles. Kim Jong Un was seen walking with aides near a newly developed unmanned aerial reconnaissance aircraft, which appeared to be larger than a fighter jet. He was seen boarding an airborne early warning and control (AEW) aircraft, as per the pictures released by KCNA.

This is the first time such aircraft was revealed by Pyongyang. The said aircraft is reportedly equipped with a radar dome on the fuselage, similar to the Boeing-manufactured Peace Eye operated by the South Korean air force.

Earlier, analysts reported that North Korea was converting a Russian-made Il-76 cargo aircraft into an early-warning aircraft. The report was made by observing Pyongyang through commercial satellite imagery.

London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) said in a report last year that an AEW aircraft would help augment North Korea’s existing land-based radar systems. However, just one such aircraft will not be enough, said the report.

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South Korea has been pressing on the potential transfer of sensitive Russian military technology to North Korea in return for Kim’s provision of thousands of North Korean troops and weapons to support Russia’s war with Ukraine. Seoul’s military said that North Korea has so far this year supplied Russia with an additional 3,000 troops as well as missiles and other ammunition.

“It is estimated that an additional 3,000 troops were sent between January and February as reinforcements,” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, as quoted by media. Reportedly, out of 11,000 North Korean soldiers dispatched to Russia in 2024, 4,000 are believed to have been killed or wounded.