North Korea’s Kim oversees launch of missile that uses AI
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Photos released by KCNA showed a missile soaring into the sky in a burst of orange flame.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a missile launch using AI technology that adjusts its flight, making it hard to evade, flying over 700km from Wonsan.
- The launch aimed to train soldiers on the hypersonic strategic weapon system, with Kim emphasising the missile's reliability and offensive strength.
- Kim's daughter Ju Ae, seen celebrating the launch, is viewed as his likely successor, while tensions remain high after a recent DMZ explosion blamed on North Korea.
AI generated
SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the launch of a missile with his daughter, state media reported on Oct 4, with the missile allegedly using artificial intelligence to adjust its trajectory.
The AI technology means the missile is “capable of changing its flight orbit at a low altitude”, Kim’s powerful sister Kim Yo Jong had said, adding this meant there was “no way to avoid” the attack.
It launched from an area around the eastern coastal city of Wonsan early on the morning of Oct 3 and flew more than 700km, South Korea’s military said, without giving further details.
According to an English-language dispatch by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim said at the launch: “Through today’s launching drill, the strategic missile soldiers have fully demonstrated their professional qualifications and counter-attack posture.”
“We must continue our responsible efforts non-stop to constantly and repeatedly make the enemy recognise the reliability and fatality of our strategic offensive means,” he added.
Seoul’s military disputed his sister’s remarks that there would be “no way to avoid” the projectile guided by AI, saying the missile launched on Oct 3 could have been intercepted.
“South Korea and the United States maintain a firm combined defence posture and assess that the missile recently launched by North Korea was well within the detection and interception capabilities of the defensive assets operated by the two allies,” Seoul’s Defence Ministry said.
“We urge North Korea to immediately cease actions that heighten tensions on the Korean peninsula,” it said, adding that the launch violated UN Security Council resolutions.
The KCNA report disclosed the exact coordinates of the missile's target.
Hong Min of Seoul’s Korea Institute for National Unification, an expert on North Korean politics, told AFP: “This time, the North disclosed the coordinates down to decimal points – equivalent to a precision of roughly 30cm.
“It shows Kim’s stance that there is nothing to hide and an expression of confidence.”
Photos released by KCNA show a missile soaring into the sky in a burst of orange flame.
Another photo shows Kim smiling, flanked by his daughter Ju Ae and wife Ri Sol Ju, who is seen clapping her hands in celebration.
Ju Ae, who was introduced to the public in 2022, is the most likely successor to her father, according to South Korea’s spy agency, citing her increasingly prominent role at major state and military events.
The launch was conducted to help train soldiers operating the “hypersonic strategic weapon system”, KCNA reported. AFP