Kim Jong Un Reportsedly Supervises AI-Equipped Missile Launch With Daughter

SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reportedly watched a missile launch with his daughter, according to state media reports released on Sunday. The missile was described as using artificial intelligence to adjust its flight path.

The AI capability, according to a statement attributed to Kim’s powerful sister, would allow the missile to “change its flight orbit at a low altitude.” She added that this would leave no way to avoid such an attack.

South Korea’s military said the missile was launched from an area near the eastern coastal city of Wonsan early Saturday morning and traveled more than 700 kilometers, or 435 miles. Officials did not provide additional details.

After overseeing the launch, Kim said, according to an English-language report from the Korean Central News Agency, that the drill had demonstrated the “professional qualifications and counterattack posture” of the country’s strategic missile forces.

He added that North Korea would continue its “responsible efforts” to make the reliability and lethality of its strategic offensive capabilities clear to the enemy.

Images released by KCNA showed a missile lifting into the sky amid a burst of orange flame. In another photo, Kim was shown smiling beside his daughter, Ju Ae, and his wife, Ri Sol Ju, who appeared to be applauding.

Ju Ae, who was first publicly introduced in 2022, is viewed by South Korea’s spy agency as the most likely successor to her father, citing her growing visibility at major political and military events.

KCNA said the launch was carried out to help train soldiers operating a “hypersonic strategic weapon system.”

The test came days after South Korea’s military demanded an apology from Pyongyang over an explosion in the Demilitarized Zone that injured three South Korean soldiers. Seoul blamed North Korea for the blast.

Pyongyang has denied responsibility for last month’s explosion and, on Friday, described South Korea as “despicable,” undercutting diplomatic overtures from Seoul’s civilian leadership aimed at restoring dialogue.

Source link