North Korea will develop drones in cooperation with russia and is "expected to start producing" them already in 2025, Japanese news outlet NHK World reports citing anonymous "sources familiar with relations" between Moscow and Pyongyang. As noted, the parties have reached an agreement to develop multiple types of drones for further mass production.
The publication doesn't specify if a firm contract was signed between the countries or what manufacturers will be involved in the project. But sources say the commitment was initiated by Moscow as payment for deployment of North Korean soldiers on frontlines against the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Read more: North Korea Expected to Send More Troops to Support russia in Kursk Region
While the information remains unverified, such close cooperation between the two dictatorship regimes isn't unexpected. Earlier Defense Express emphasized the threat posed by the rapprochement between Moscow and Pyongyang over the past few years, where North Korea is essentially becoming a backyard of russia's military-industrial complex.
The russian defense industry has enough expertise in manufacturing drones, from larger S-70 Okhotnik UCAVs to smaller reconnaissance drones and loitering munitions, and recently FPV drones. A surge of new approaches and technologies has been facilitated by the frontline needs of the russian invasion army in Ukraine, and North Korean troops just got a chance to experience first-hand the high-paced-high-technology warfare while fighting there as well.
Drone development in the DPRK, on the other hand, is falling behind in terms of modernity and relies much on reverse engineering, as evident from the copycat models presented by North Korea.
The most pressing concern is the possibility that a streamlined production chain is established where North Korean cheap workforce compensates for russia's own lack of qualified personnel in the military industry, and batches of drones are supplied straight to the warzone for practical testing in combat conditions and further refinement.
For comparison, the iranian Shahed-136/131 kamikaze drone has already undergone a series of modifications to better suit the war realities, with multiple variants of this UAV derived, some including modern technologies like mesh network or 4G Internet connection, or specialized warheads.
Last but not least, the Chinese factor shouldn't be discarded. Many amongst russian unmanned systems heavily rely on components acquired from the People's Republic of China, some even entirely developed by local companies yet disguised as indigenous russian products.
Read more: Italmas, aka russian Object 54, For the First Time Spotted in Ukraine Warzone: Features and Threats of the New Weapon
