North Korea Showcases 'Suicide Drones'... Concerns Over Realization of 'War Experience'

North Korea Conducts First Public Display This Summer Followed by Additional Performance Tests
Kim Jong-un Provides On-site Guidance... Orders Full-scale Mass Production
North Korea Gaining War Experience, Rising Concerns Over Development for Actual Combat Use

Kim Jong-un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, revisited the site of the performance test of the 'suicide attack-type unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)' and ordered mass production. This move is interpreted as an attempt to increase pressure on South Korea amid concerns that North Korean troops deployed to the Russian battlefield are gaining experience in modern warfare, including drone weapons.

North Korea Showcases 'Suicide Drones'... Concerns Over Realization of 'War Experience'

According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 15th, Chairman Kim Jong Un supervised the performance test of an attack-type unmanned aerial vehicle produced by a research institute under the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Technology Consortium the previous day. Yonhap News

According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 15th, Chairman Kim guided the performance test of the attack-type UAV produced by a research institute under the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Technology Union the previous day. The agency introduced the 'suicide attack-type UAV' as "designed to be used within various strike ranges on land and sea" and stated that it "has the mission to precisely attack arbitrary enemy targets." It also added a 'show of force' by claiming that the UAV precisely struck targets during the performance test.

Chairman Kim ordered the establishment of a production system and full-scale mass production. He emphasized, "Competition to adopt revolutionary technologies in the global arena and utilize UAVs as a major means of military power is accelerating," and added, "The scope of UAV use in military activities is continuously expanding, and it is becoming easier to utilize them as a component of striking power in new domains while keeping production costs low."

North Korea first unveiled the suicide-type UAV in August this year. At that time, Chairman Kim also visited the site and instructed, "Continuously develop not only attack-type UAVs but also underwater strategic weapon systems such as nuclear torpedoes."

Previously, North Korea revealed two types of white-colored UAVs, showing scenes of them flying toward and striking simulated targets presumed to be South Korea's K-2 tanks, causing explosions. Photos released by North Korean media on this day showed UAVs of similar shapes to those unveiled last summer taking off or striking targets.

North Korea's UAV development is aimed at threatening South Korea. Above all, there is significant concern about North Korea's weapons system development as North Korean troops deployed to the Russian battlefield are accumulating real combat experience. Given the proven effectiveness of drone attacks in the Ukraine war, the possibility of utilizing them in actual combat has increased.