SEOUL — North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un has called for accelerated mass production of exploding drones designed to crash into targets, state media said on Friday.

Kim said the development of the weapons in the country was going well, and stressed the need to go into "full-scale mass production" as soon as possible, according to state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The outlet paraphrased Kim, saying that the drones were easy to make at a low cost for a range of military activities, and reported that Kim had acknowledged the importance of drones in modern warfare.

Photos of Kim talking with officials near two different types of unmanned aerial vehicles were also published, similar to photos of similar weapons that explode on impact released by the agency in August.

The drones are capable of flying various routes and can accurately strike targets, according to KNCA, attaching images of a car and old tanks being destroyed.

The news comes as the US, South Korea and Japan recently joined together for military exercises involving advanced fighter jets and a US aircraft in nearby international waters in a show of their strength against North Korea.

Last month, North Korea accused South Korea of sending drones into its capital of Pyongyang to drop anti-Korean propaganda leaflets, threatening to respond with force if the incident happened again.

South Korea's military has not confirmed if the allegations were true or not.

The incident is one in a series that indicates escalating tensions between the neighbours as Kim flaunts his advancing nuclear and missile programme, which includes weapons able to target South Korea as well as intercontinental ballistic missiles that could potentially reach the US.

North Korea has also sent around 12,000 troops into Russia's Kursk region, according to US, South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence.

Their involvement in Russia's war in Ukraine, which is nearing its third year, comes North Korea ratified a landmark defence pact with Russia on Tuesday promising to provide each other with mutual military aid and assistance if attacked.

The pact has sparked fears in Seoul about what North Korean could be getting in return for its support to Russia, such as Russian technology Kim could use to further develop its nuclear arsenal.

South Korean officials have said that North Korea will be a key topic in a summit between US President Joe Biden and his South Korean and Japanese counterparts set to be held this week at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings in Peru. — Euronews