North Korea's Kim Jong Un oversees tests of 'suicide drones'

By Joyce Lee

SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watched as new "suicide drones" took off and destroyed test targets including a mock tank, and urged researchers to develop artificial intelligence for the unmanned vehicles, state media reported on Monday.

Kim visited the Drone Institute of North Korea's Academy of Defence Sciences on Saturday and viewed a successful test of drones correctly identifying and destroying designated targets after flying along different preset routes, state news agency KCNA said.

Kim called for the production of more suicide drones to be used in tactical infantry and special operation units, such as underwater suicide attack drones, as well as strategic reconnaissance and multi-purpose attack drones, KCNA said.

Also known as loitering munitions, such weapons been widely used in the war in Ukraine as well as in the Middle East.

Loitering munitions can typically be aloft and ready to strike before a specific target is located, then attack by crashing into the target with a built-in warhead.

Photos released by state media showed at least four different types of drones, some of which were launched with the aid of small rocket engines before their propellers took over.

When asked about visual similarities between some of the North Korean drones and Russia's ZALA Lancet and the Iranian-designed Shahed, which is also used by Russia, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said more analysis is necessary.

"We understand that some gifts (drones) were given in an exchange between North Korea and Russia in the past... We need to analyse various measures to see if those have improved performance," a spokesperson for the JCS said in a briefing.

Nuclear-armed North Korea has close ties to Russia and Iran and a history of military cooperation with both.

Seoul's Unification Ministry said it was the first time Pyongyang had unveiled suicide drones.

Several North Korean drones crossed the border into the South in 2022 and even briefly entered a no-fly zone surrounding Seoul's presidential office, before turning back.

South Korea has said it will deploy laser weapons to shoot down North Korean drones this year, becoming the world's first country to deploy and operate such weapons in the military, and some skyscrapers in Seoul host anti-aircraft guns on their roofs.

South Korea and the U.S. kicked off annual summertime military exercises last week, including practising responses to North Korean drones.

(Reporting by Joyce Lee; Additional reporting by Hyunsu Yim and Josh Smith; Editing by Sandra Maler)