SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended an exhibition devoted to drones and called for rapidly expanding the country’s drone technology, state media reported Friday, as his military escalates threats against South Korea and the U.S.

Acquiring advanced drones is a top priority for Kim, who now wants to strengthen conventional and nuclear capabilities to counter what he calls U.S.-led security threats.

It’s unclear how far North Korea’s drone program has progressed. Experts say Kim’s troops sent to Russia to support its war against Ukraine likely gained experience in drone warfare from Russian forces and their own battlefield experiences.

Exhibition highlights Kim’s focus on drone program

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said Kim visited the exhibition Thursday, viewing attack drones and other models that it said show recent achievements in drone technology. In a speech there, Kim announced unspecified steps needed to “rapidly expand and strengthen the unmanned aeronautical technology,” KCNA said.

Kim attends a North Korean drone exhibition and calls for boosting the technology | iNFOnews.ca — In this photo provided on Oct. 30, 2026, by the North Korean government, its leader Kim Jong Un, center, and his daughter, second right, visit an exhibition of a variety of attack and other drones at the Wonsan-Kalma coastal tourist area, North Korea, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. Korean language watermark on image as provided by source reads: “KCNA” which is the abbreviation for Korean Central News Agency. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

South Korea’s Unification Ministry said it appeared to be North Korea’s first exhibition exclusively dedicated to drones. South Korean media reported the exhibition displayed more than 30 kinds of drones, including stealth drones and first-person-view attack drones.

In an analysis for the North Korea-focused 38 North website in September 2025, analyst Martyn Williams said the country’s drone program dates back to at least 2011 and that “further drone development and deployment should be expected as the country works to enhance preparedness for modern warfare.”

“The use of drones has been critical in the wars currently being fought in Europe and the Middle East. This trend is likely to ring true for future conflicts — a lesson that all countries are learning, including North Korea,” Williams wrote.

South Korea’s state-run Institute for National Security Strategy said in a report last year that Russian assistance could help North Korea overcome technological and industrial limitations on its drone program.

Kim observes weapons tests alongside his daughter

To mark the event, KCNA said North Korea tested various drones, missiles and 600 mm-caliber ultraprecision multiple rocket launchers.

KCNA photos showed Kim watching soaring weapons and clenching his fist while his teenage daughter stood beside him and clapped. South Korea’s spy agency believes the girl, reportedly about 13, is Kim’s designated heir.

South Korea’s military said it detected the launches of about 10 short-range ballistic missiles off the North’s east coast Thursday.

Tensions between the two Koreas have been high since mine blasts at their border last month wounded three South Korean soldiers. Seoul accused North Korea of burying the mines south of the military demarcation line and demanded an apology. Pyongyang has denied responsibility for the explosions and warned of retaliation if provoked.

Last week, North Korea threatened to resume propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts and place new weapons systems along the border.

North Korea’s Defense Ministry on Friday condemned a joint U.S.-South Korea air exercise as “provocative” and warned it was increasing the danger of an armed conflict. South Korea’s military has said the two-week biannual Freedom Flag drill was to run until Nov. 6 and was meant to improve combined operational capabilities. It said fighter jets, helicopters and drones would take part.

North Korea pulled out of talks with the U.S. and South Korea after Kim’s high-stakes diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. In recent weeks, North Korea has dialed up weapons testing activities in a likely attempt to boost its leverage in potential diplomacy with the U.S. after Trump expressed his eagerness to restore talks with Kim.

Meanwhile, Switzerland’s Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis arrived in North Korea on Thursday for the reopening of Switzerland’s diplomatic office in Pyongyang and to meet North Korean officials. He is traveling on to South Korea on Friday.