North Korea Begins Training for Mass Drone and Missile Attacks, WSJ Reports

North Korea has begun training for mass drone and missile attacks, the Wall Street Journal reported. Since September, the Korean People’s Army has been conducting exercises that rehearse the simultaneous launch of large numbers of unmanned aerial vehicles and ballistic missiles.

The tactic mirrors approaches used in Russia’s war against Ukraine and in recent Middle East conflicts, where swarms of inexpensive drones saturate air defense systems. The objective is to overload defensive networks with numerous low‑cost targets, compelling adversaries to expend costly interceptor missiles.

The United States encountered a similar challenge during its confrontations with Iran, where mass drone assaults strained missile defense inventories. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has elevated military modernization to the same priority level as the country’s nuclear program.

Under a five‑year plan outlined by Kim, the DPRK aims to develop new attack drones equipped with artificial intelligence, further enhancing its capacity for coordinated, large‑scale strikes. Analysts say the program reflects a broader shift toward asymmetric warfare capabilities.