North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has overseen tests of newly developed AI-powered suicide drones and called for their increased production, North Korean state media said Thursday.

Photos released from the communist country show Kim inspecting new upgraded reconnaissance drones that are capable of detecting various tactical targets and enemy activities on land and at sea, KCNA state news agency said.

Kim said unmanned control and AI capability must be the top priorities in modern arms development.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has overseen tests of newly developed AI-powered suicide drones and called for their increased production, North Korean state media said. (KCNA via Reuters)

Kim was also seen walking to a large aircraft with four engines and a radar dome mounted on the fuselage. Analysts have previously reported that North Korea was converting the Russian-made Il-76 cargo aircraft for an early-warning role to help augment the North’s existing land-based radar systems, which are sometimes limited by the peninsula’s mountainous terrain, London’s International Institute for Strategic Studies said in a report in September.

Kim was also seen walking to a large aircraft with four engines and a radar dome mounted on the fuselage. (KCNA via Reuters)

The drone display comes just weeks after North Korea revealed, for the first time, a nuclear-powered submarine under construction, a weapons system that could pose a major security threat to South Korea and the U.S.

It also comes as North Korea has been sending more missiles, artillery equipment and ammunition to help Russia — raising concerns that North Korea may receive Russian technology transfers in return.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea has said that North Korea could increase its weapons supplies further depending on the war situation. Russia and Ukraine recently agreed on a limited ceasefire, though both sides have accused each other of violations.

North Korea has sent approximately 11,000 military personnel to fight alongside Russia in the war against Ukraine in its first involvement in a large-scale conflict since the 1950-53 Korean War. The South Korean military assessed that around 4,000 of them have been killed or wounded.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.