View source for Korean People's Army

{{Short description|Combined military forces of North Korea}}
{{About|the North Korean military forces|the South Korean military forces|Republic of Korea Armed Forces}}
{{pp-sock|small=yes}}
{{Use British English|date=January 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox national military
| country = North Korea
| name = Korean People's Army
| image = Emblem of the Korean People's Army.svg{{!}}180px
| caption = Emblem of the Korean People's Army
| image2 = Flag of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army (Normal).svg
| caption2 = Flag of the Korean People's Army
| founded = {{start date and age|df=yes|1932|4|25}}
| current_form = {{start date and age|df=yes|1948|2|8}}
| disbanded = 
| branches = {{unbulletedlist
|{{army|North Korea|size=25px}}
|{{navy|North Korea|size=25px}}
|{{air force|North Korea|size=25px}}
|{{flagicon image|Flag of the Korean People's Army Strategic Force (2023, Obverse).svg|size=25px}} [[Korean People's Army Strategic Force]]
|{{flagicon image|Flag of the Korean People's Army Special Operation Force (2023, Obverse).svg|size=25px}} [[Korean People's Army Special Operations Forces]]
|{{flagicon image|Flag of the Missile General Bureau (North Korea).svg|size=25px}} [[Missile Administration (North Korea)|Missile Administration]]
}}
| headquarters = [[State Affairs Commission of North Korea|State Affairs Commission]], [[Pyongyang]]
<!-- Leadership -->| commander-in-chief_title = Governing body
| commander-in-chief = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea|Central Military Commission]] (CMC)
{{Infobox |child = yes
|label1 = CMC leadership
|data1 = '''[[General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea|Chairman]]:'''<br />{{Flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Wonsu|Marshal]] [[Kim Jong Un]]{{parabr}}'''Vice Chairmen''':<br />{{Flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Wonsu|Marshal]] [[Ri Pyong-chol]]<br />{{Flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Chasu|Vice Marshal]] [[Ri Yong-gil]]
}}
| chief minister_title = [[Ministry of Defence (North Korea)|Minister of Defence]]
| chief minister = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Daejang|Army General]] [[No Kwang-chol]]
| chief_of_staff_title = [[General Staff Department of the Korean People's Army|Chief of the General Staff Department]]
| chief_of_staff = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Chasu|Vice Marshal]] [[Ri Yong-gil]]
| commander_title = [[General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army|Director of the General Political Bureau]]
| commander = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Workers' Party of Korea.svg|size=25px}} [[Daejang|Army General]] [[Jong Kyong-thaek]]
<!-- Manpower -->| age = 17–30
| conscription = 18
| active = 1,320,000<ref name="IISS_2023">[[#IISS2019|IISS 2023]], pp. 280–281.</ref>
| ranked = 5th
| reserve = 560,000+<ref name="IISS_2023"/>
| deployed = <!-- Financial -->
| amount = Approximately US$4 billion {{small|(2019)}}<ref name="AP_2024">{{cite web |title=North Korea sustains high defense spending with new budget |url=https://apnews.com/article/politics-united-states-government-kim-jong-un-north-korea-south-d834bdffda0c2277f180e2e749b5e764|publisher=The Associated Press |access-date=25 August 2024|year=2024}}</ref>
| percent_GDP = Approximately 26% {{small|(2019)}}<ref name="AP_2024"/> 
<!-- Related articles -->| history = 
| ranks = [[Comparative military ranks of Korea]]<br>[[Military ranks of North Korea]]
| domestic_suppliers = {{unbulletedlist| [[Korea Mining and Development Trading Corporation]]|[[Nampo Kangso Missile Factory]]|[[No 28 Shipyard Najin]]|[[Nampo Shipyard]]}}
| bullets = 
| title = 
| foreign_suppliers = {{unbulletedlist|{{flag|China}}|{{flag|Russia}}|{{flag|Soviet Union}} (historical)}}
}}
{{Infobox Korean name/auto |hangul=^조선_인민군 |hanja=朝鮮人民軍 }}
{{Politics of North Korea|expanded=State Affairs Commission|width=22.0em}}

The '''Korean People's Army''' ('''KPA'''; {{Korean/auto|hangul=^조선_인민군|mr=yes}}) encompasses the combined [[military force]]s of North Korea and the armed wing of the [[Workers' Party of Korea]] (WPK). The KPA consists of five branches: the [[Korean People's Army Ground Force|Ground Force]], the [[Korean People's Navy|Naval Force]], the [[Korean People's Army Air Force|Air Force]], the [[Korean People's Army Strategic Force|Strategic Force]], and the [[Korean People's Army Special Operations Forces|Special Operations Forces]]. It is commanded by the [[Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea|WPK Central Military Commission]], which is chaired by the [[General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea|WPK general secretary]], and the [[President of the State Affairs of North Korea|president of the State Affairs]]; both posts are currently headed by [[Kim Jong Un]].

The KPA considers its primary adversaries to be the [[Republic of Korea Armed Forces]] and [[United States Forces Korea]], across the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone]], as it has since the [[Korean Armistice Agreement|Armistice Agreement]] of July 1953. {{As of|2021}} it is the [[List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel|second largest military organisation]] in the world, with {{Percentage|7769000|{{UN_Population|Dem. People's Republic of Korea}}|1}} of the North Korean population actively serving, in reserve or in a paramilitary capacity.<ref name="unfpa">{{cite web |url=http://article.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.asp?total_id=4109686 |script-title=ko:한반도 인구 7천400만명 시대 임박 |publisher=United Nations |author=UNFPA |date=1 October 2009 |access-date=21 November 2012 |language=ko |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524125334/http://article.joinsmsn.com/news/article/article.asp?total_id=4109686 |archive-date=24 May 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/sources/census/2010_PHC/North_Korea/Final%20national%20census%20report.pdf |title=DPR Korea 2008 Population Census: National Report |access-date=19 February 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331091148/http://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic/sources/census/2010_PHC/North_Korea/Final%20national%20census%20report.pdf |archive-date=31 March 2010 }}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Flag of the Korean People's Army (1948).svg|thumb|The KPA's first flag, used in 1948]]
[[File:Flag of the Korean People's Army (1992).svg|thumb|The KPA's flag from 1992 to 1993. Since this flag's retirement in 1993, the KPA has not had its own dedicated flag.]]
[[File:Flag of the Korean People's Army Ground Force (1993-2023).svg|thumb|The flag of the [[Korean People's Army Ground Force|KPA Ground Force]] (in use from 1993 to 2023) was sometimes used to represent the entire Korean People's Army.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What North Korea's army flags can teach us about its recent history |last1=Tertitskiy |first1=Fyodor|author-link1=Fyodor Tertitskiy|last2=Hotham|first2=Oliver|work=[[NK News]] |date=10 April 2018 |access-date=12 November 2018|url=https://www.nknews.org/2018/04/what-north-koreas-army-flags-can-teach-us-about-its-recent-history/|quote = The modern design of the flags appeared in 1993, when Kim Jong Il replaced the flag of the KPA with three separate ones for the army, navy, and air force. [...] despite some claims, there has been no design for a unified flag for all the Armed Forces since: the DPRK occasionally, however, uses the Ground Forces flag as a substitute to symbolize the entire military.}}</ref>]]
[[File:Victorious Fatherland Liberation War Museum Monument4.jpg|thumb|A monument in Pyongyang, depicting North Korean airmen and a [[MiG]] fighter]]

===Korean Volunteer Army, 1939–1948===
In 1939, the [[Korean Volunteer Army]] (KVA), was formed in [[Yan'an]], China.<ref>Scobell & Sanford 2007, p. 18.</ref> The two individuals responsible for the army were [[Kim Tu-bong]] and [[Mu Chong]]. At the same time, a school was established near Yan'an for training military and political leaders for a future independent Korea. By 1945, the KVA had grown to approximately 1,000 men, mostly Korean deserters from the [[Imperial Japanese Army]]. During this period, the KVA fought alongside the Chinese communist [[Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army]] from which it drew its arms and ammunition. After the defeat of the Japanese, the KVA accompanied the [[Chinese Communist Party]] forces into eastern [[Jilin]], intending to gain recruits from ethnic [[Koreans in China]], particularly from [[Yanbian]], and then enter Korea.<ref>Elleman, Bruce. ''Beijing's Power and China's Borders: Twenty Neighbors in Asia''. Routledge (2014). pp. 116–117</ref>

===Soviet Korean Units===
Just after [[World War II]] ended and during the Soviet Union's occupation of the part of Korea north of the 38th Parallel, the Soviet [[25th Army (Soviet Union)|25th Army]] headquarters in Pyongyang issued a statement ordering all armed resistance groups in the northern part of the peninsula to disband on 12 October 1945. Two thousand Koreans with previous experience in the Soviet [[Red Army]] were sent to various locations around the country to organise [[constabulary]] forces with permission from Soviet military headquarters, and the force was created on 21 October 1945.<ref>Scobell & Sanford 2007, pp. 18–19.</ref>

===Formation of National Army===
The headquarters felt a need for a separate unit for security around railways, and the formation of the unit was announced on 11 January 1946. That unit was activated on 15 August of the same year to supervise existing security forces and creation of the national armed forces.<ref name=ScobellSanford2007p19>Scobell & Sanford 2007, p. 19.</ref>

Military institutes such as the Pyongyang Academy (became No. 2 KPA Officers School in Jan. 1949) and the Central Constabulary Academy (became KPA Military Academy in Dec. 1948) soon followed for the education of political and military officers for the new armed forces.

After the military was organised and facilities to educate its new recruits were constructed, the Constabulary Discipline Corps was reorganised into the Korean People's Army General Headquarters. The previously semi-official units became military regulars with the distribution of Soviet uniforms, badges, and weapons that followed the inception of the headquarters.<ref name=ScobellSanford2007p19/>

The [[State Security Department]], a forerunner to the Ministry of People's Defense, was created as part of the Interim People's Committee on 4 February 1948. The formal creation of the Korean People's Army was announced four days later on 8 February, the day after the Fourth Plenary Session of the People's Assembly approved the plan to separate the roles of the military and those of the police,<ref>James M. Minnich, The North Korean People's Army, p. 36</ref> seven months before the [[Government of North Korea|government of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] was proclaimed on 9 September 1948. In addition, the Ministry of Defense was established, which controlled a central guard battalion, two divisions, and an independent mixed and combined arms brigade.<ref>Scobell & Sanford 2007, p. 20.</ref>

===Conflicts and events===
[[File:Mansudae Grand Monument 26.JPG|thumb|upright|The Memorial of Soldiers at the Mansudae Grand Monument]]
Before the outbreak of the [[Korean War]], Soviet leader [[Joseph Stalin]] equipped the KPA with modern armaments.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Korean War 101: Causes, Course, and Conclusion of the Conflict |url=https://www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/the-korean-war-101-causes-course-and-conclusion-of-the-conflict |website=Association for Asian Studies |access-date=28 September 2023 |archive-date=16 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231216220858/https://www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/the-korean-war-101-causes-course-and-conclusion-of-the-conflict/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Korean War |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Korean-War |website=Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=28 September 2023 |archive-date=24 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424090911/https://www.britannica.com/event/Korean-War |url-status=live }}</ref> During the opening phases of the Korean War in 1950, the KPA quickly drove South Korean forces south and [[First Battle of Seoul|captured Seoul]], only to lose 70,000 of their 100,000-strong army in the autumn after U.S. amphibious landings at the [[Battle of Incheon]] and a subsequent drive to the [[Yalu River]]. On 4 November, China openly staged a military intervention. The KPA subsequently played a secondary and minor role to the Chinese [[People's Volunteer Army]] in the remainder of the conflict. By the time of the Armistice in 1953, the KPA had sustained 290,000 casualties and lost 90,000 men as POWs.

In 1953, the [[Military Armistice Commission]] (MAC) was able to oversee and enforce the terms of the armistice. The [[Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission]] (NNSC), made up of delegations from [[Czechoslovak Socialist Republic|Czechoslovakia]], [[Polish People's Republic|Poland]], [[Sweden]] and [[Switzerland]], carried out inspections to ensure implementation of the terms of the Armistice that prevented reinforcements or new weapons being brought into Korea.

Soviet thinking on the strategic scale was replaced in December 1962 with the Maoist concept of a [[people's war]]. Along with the mechanization of some infantry units, more emphasis was put on light weapons, high-angle indirect fire, night fighting, and sea denial.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0146)|title=The Evolution of North Korean Military Thought|work=North Korea Country Study|publisher=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]]|year=1993|access-date=3 September 2012|archive-date=9 January 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109103947/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0146)|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the fall of 2024, amidst the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], elements of the Korean People's Army were [[North Korean involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine#Deployment of North Korean soldiers to Russia|clandestinely sent]] to [[Russia]] to bolster Russian forces fighting against [[Ukraine]] in the [[Kursk offensive (2024–2025)|Kursk offensive]].<ref name="NBC20250428">{{Cite web |date=2025-04-28 |title=North Korea confirms it sent troops to Russia, calling them 'heroes' |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/world/asia/north-korea-confirms-sent-troops-russia-calling-heroes-rcna203245 |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> The force, which included [[Korean People's Army Special Operations Forces]],<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Valerio |first1=Helen Regan |last2=Yoonjung Seo |first2=Mike |date=2024-12-18 |title=Indoctrinated, loyal and well trained: Don't underestimate North Korean soldiers in Russia, experts say |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/17/asia/north-korean-soldiers-russia-intl-hnk/index.html |access-date=2025-01-27 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref> was said to have consisted of 10,000 men fighting in Russian uniforms and under Russian command.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kennedy |first1=Niamh |last2=Yee |first2=Isaac |last3=Butenko |first3=Victoria |date=2024-10-19 |title=North Korean troops seen being equipped in Russia ahead of likely deployment to Ukraine |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/10/19/asia/north-korea-ukraine-russia-troops-uniform-intl/index.html |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Denisova |first=Kateryna |date=2024-10-17 |title='First step to World War' — North Korea preparing 10,000 soldiers to join Russia's war, Zelensky confirms |url=https://kyivindependent.com/north-korea-preparing-10-000-soldiers/ |access-date=2025-01-12 |website=The Kyiv Independent |language=en}}</ref> Initially denied by both Russia and North Korea, the operation was publicly revealed after Russia claimed the last [[Armed Forces of Ukraine|Ukrainian forces]] were driven out of [[Kursk Oblast]].<ref name="NBC20250428"/>

==Date of establishment history==
Until 1977, the official date of establishment of the Korean People's Army was 8 February 1948. From 1940s, North Korean historiography started to claim that [[Kim Il Sung]] established an anti-Japanese guerrilla army, the [[Korean People's Revolutionary Army]],  on 25 April 1932. North Korea claims that the KPRA was officially transformed into the People's Army in anticipation of the government's establishment on February 8, 1948. In 1978, April 25 was designated as the "Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Army" and North Korea held large-scale commemorative events. The reason for changing the date of the founding of the People's Army in North Korea is that Kim Il Sung organized the "Anti-Japanese People's Guerrilla Unit", a unit of the Anti-Japanese People's Army, in Ando County, Manchuria, on April 25, 1932, which later developed into the "Korean People's Revolutionary Army" and played a significant role in the anti-Japanese struggle. This is based on the "Kim Il Sung revolutionary tradition."<ref name="KPRA">{{cite web |script-title=ko:조선인민혁명군 (朝鮮人民革命軍) |url=https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0070134 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231030133204/https://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Article/E0070134 |archive-date=30 October 2023 |access-date=2023-10-24 |publisher=[[Encyclopedia of Korean Culture]] |language=ko}}</ref> Both of these are celebrated as [[Military Foundation Day|army days]], with decennial anniversaries treated as major celebrations, except from 1978 to 2014 when only the 1932 anniversary was celebrated.<ref name="38north-20180201">{{cite news |last=Carlin |first=Robert |date=1 February 2018 |title=A Few Facts on North Korea's Army Day |url=https://www.38north.org/2018/02/rcarlin020118/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191109212924/https://www.38north.org/2018/02/rcarlin020118/ |archive-date=9 November 2019 |access-date=3 February 2018 |work=[[38 North]] |publisher=U.S.-Korea Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies}}</ref><ref name="founded">See "Puk chuyo'gi'nyŏm'il 5–10 nyŏnmada taegyumo yŏlpyŏngsik" (North Korea Holds Large Military Parades for Anniversaries Every 5–10 years), Chosŏn Ilbo, 25 April 2007; Chang Jun-ik, "Pukhan Inmingundaesa" (History of the North Korean Military), Seoul, Sŏmundang, 1991, pp. 19–88; Kim Kwang-su, "Chosŏninmingun'ŭi ch'angsŏlgwa palchŏn, 1945–1990" (Foundation and Development of the Korean People's Army, 1945–1990), Chapter Two in Kyŏngnam University North Korean Studies Graduate School, Pukhan'gunsamunje'ŭi chaejomyŏng (The Military of North Korea: A New Look), Seoul, Hanul Academy, 2006, pp. 63–78.</ref><ref name="KPRA" /> By 2019, the KPA's date of establishment had been reverted to 8 February 1948.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dailynk.com/%eb%b6%81%ed%95%9c-%ec%96%b4%ec%a0%9c%ec%99%80-%ec%98%a4%eb%8a%98-%ea%b1%b4%ea%b5%b0%ec%a0%88-%eb%b3%80%ec%b2%9c%ec%82%ac%ec%99%80-%ea%b9%80%ec%a0%95%ec%9d%80%ec%9d%98-%ea%b3%a0%eb%87%8c/ |script-title=ko:건군절 변천사와 김정은의 고뇌 |website=[[Daily NK]] |date=30 August 2023 |language=ko |access-date=19 November 2019 |archive-date=2 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190902192029/https://www.dailynk.com/%EB%B6%81%ED%95%9C-%EC%96%B4%EC%A0%9C%EC%99%80-%EC%98%A4%EB%8A%98-%EA%B1%B4%EA%B5%B0%EC%A0%88-%EB%B3%80%EC%B2%9C%EC%82%AC%EC%99%80-%EA%B9%80%EC%A0%95%EC%9D%80%EC%9D%98-%EA%B3%A0%EB%87%8C/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Organization==
[[File:North Korean soldier Demilitarized Zone of Korea 2005.jpg|thumb|A North Korean soldier at the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone|DMZ]], 2005]]

===Commission and leadership===
The charter of the WPK states that the KPA is "the revolutionary armed forces of the Workers' Party of Korea and shall uphold the guidance of the party". The charter also states that the [[Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea|WPK Central Military Commission]] (CMC) is "the party's supreme institution on military guidance" and has "command over the armed forces of the republic". The CMC is headed by the [[General Secretary and Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea|general secretary of the WPK]], who is also CMC chairman ''ex officio''.<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Gee-dong |title=The Changing Status and Role of the North Korean Military |url=https://www.globalasia.org/v16no3/cover/the-changing-status-and-role-of-the-north-korean-military_gee-dong-lee |access-date=2023-06-25 |website=[[Global Asia]] |language=en |archive-date=25 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625162610/https://www.globalasia.org/v16no3/cover/the-changing-status-and-role-of-the-north-korean-military_gee-dong-lee |url-status=live }}</ref> The state constitution also names the [[President of the State Affairs of North Korea|president of the State Affairs]] as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, and stipulates that the mission of the armed forces is to "defend unto death the Party Central Committee headed by the great Comrade Kim Jong Un".<ref name=":4">{{Cite news |last=Atsuhito |first=Isozaki |date=26 August 2019 |title=North Korea Revamps Its Constitution |work=[[The Diplomat (magazine)|The Diplomat]] |url=https://thediplomat.com/2019/08/north-korea-revamps-its-constitution/ |access-date=25 June 2023 |archive-date=25 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625162609/https://thediplomat.com/2019/08/north-korea-revamps-its-constitution/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Almost all officers of the KPA began their military careers as privates; only very few people are admitted to a military academy without prior service. The result is supposed to be an egalitarian military system where officers are familiar with the life of a military private and "military nobility" is all but nonexistent.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tertitskiy |first=Fyodor |author-link=Fyodor Tertitskiy|date=6 June 2016 |title=The good things in North Korea |url=https://www.nknews.org/2016/06/the-good-things-in-north-korea/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617153436/https://www.nknews.org/2016/06/the-good-things-in-north-korea/ |archive-date=17 June 2016 |access-date=20 July 2016 |work=[[NK News]]}}</ref>

==== History ====
{{more citations needed section|date=May 2023}}
Since 1990, numerous and dramatic transformations within North Korea have led to the current command and control structure. The details of the majority of these changes are simply unknown to the world. What little is known indicates that many changes were the natural result of the deaths of the aging leadership including [[Kim Il Sung]] (July 1994), Minister of People's Armed Forces [[O Jin-u]] (February 1995) and Minister of Defence [[Choe Kwang]] (February 1997).

The vast majority of changes were undertaken to secure the power and position of [[Kim Jong Il]]. Formerly, what is now the [[State Affairs Commission]] - formerly the [[National Defense Commission (North Korea)|National Defence Commission]] - was part of the [[Central People's Committee]] (CPC) while the [[Ministry of Defence (North Korea)|Ministry of Defence]], from 1982 onward, was under direct presidential control. At the Eighteenth session of the sixth Central People's Committee, held on 23 May 1990, the SAC became established as its own independent commission, rising to the same status as the CPC (now the [[Cabinet of North Korea]]) and not subordinated to it, as was the case before. Concurrent with this, Kim Jong Il was appointed first vice-chairman of the National Defence Commission. The following year, on 24 December 1991, Kim Jong Il was appointed [[Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army]]. Four months later, on 20 April 1992, Kim Jong Il was awarded the rank of [[Wonsu|Marshal]] and his father, in virtue of being the KPA's founding commander in chief, became [[Taewonsu|Grand Marshal]] as a result and one year later he became the chairman of the National Defence Commission, by now under [[Supreme People's Assembly]] control under the then 1992 constitution as amended.

Within the KPA, between December 1991 and December 1995, nearly 800 high officers (out of approximately 1,200) received promotions and preferential assignments. Three days after Kim Jong Il became Marshal, eight generals were appointed to the rank of Vice-Marshal. In April 1997, on the 85th anniversary of [[Day of the Sun|Kim Il Sung's birthday]], Kim Jong Il promoted 127 general and admiral grade officers. The following April he ordered the promotions of another 22 generals and flag officers. Along with these changes, many KPA officers were appointed to influential positions within the WPK. These promotions continue today, simultaneous with the celebration of Kim Il Sung's birthday and the KPA anniversary celebrations every April and since recently in July to honour the end of the Korean War. Under Kim Jong Il's leadership, political officers dispatched from the party monitored every move of a general's daily life, according to analysts<ref name="nytimes.com"/> similar to the work of Soviet [[political commissar]]s during the early and middle years of the military establishment.

Under Kim Jong Il, the KPA effectively exercised full control of both the [[Politburo of the Workers' Party of Korea|Politburo]] and the CMC, the KPA General Political and General Staff Departments and the [[Ministry of Defence (North Korea)|Ministry of Defence]], all having KPA representatives with a minimum general officer rank. During this period the primary path for command and control of the KPA extended through the [[National Defense Commission (North Korea)|National Defence Commission]] which was led by its chairman [[Kim Jong Il]] until 2011, to the Ministry of Defence and its General Staff Department.<ref>[http://merln.ndu.edu/merln/mipal/reports/NorthKoreaPrimer03Nov05.doc United States Department of Defense Virtual Information Center, ''North Korea Primer''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927152211/http://merln.ndu.edu/merln/mipal/reports/NorthKoreaPrimer03Nov05.doc|date=27 September 2011}} accessed 27 June 2011.</ref> From there on, command and control flowed to the various bureaus and operational units. A secondary path, to ensure political control of the military establishment, extended through the CMC. The party's power was diluted; the CMC was stripped of its authority to command the KPA in 2010. The KPA party committee outranked provincial party committees, while KPA's [[General Political Bureau of the Korean People's Army|General Political Bureau]] (GPB) had equal status to the WPK Central Committee.<ref name=":6" />

The organization of the KPA leadership was reformed again under [[Kim Jong Un]]. The [[Supreme People's Assembly]] (SPA) amended the [[Constitution of North Korea|constitution]] in June 2016, abolishing the National Defence Commission (NDC) except in times of war, and replacing it with the [[State Affairs Commission of North Korea|State Affairs Commission]] (SAC), which was named the "supreme policy-oriented leadership body of State power". Kim became the [[President of the State Affairs of North Korea|chairman of the State Affairs Commission]] on 29 June 2016. These amendments marked the decrease of the military's influence, with the newly established SAC including more civilian and less military members than the NDC.<ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Aoki |first=Naoko |date=21 December 2021 |title=A Decade of the Kim Jong Un Doctrine |work=[[Foreign Policy]] |url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/12/21/north-korea-kim-jong-un-doctrine-decade-10-years/ |access-date=25 June 2023 |archive-date=25 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625162609/https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/12/21/north-korea-kim-jong-un-doctrine-decade-10-years/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The constitution was further amended in 2019.<ref name=":4" /> The constitution now stipulated that the mission of North Korea's armed forces was to "defend unto death the Party Central Committee headed by the great Comrade Kim Jong Un". The chairman of the State Affairs Commission was named as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces as well as the "supreme representative of all the Korean people".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Josh |date=2019-08-29 |title=North Korea changes constitution to solidify Kim Jong Un's rule |language=en |work=[[Reuters]] |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-north-korea-constitution-idUSKCN1VJ1JQ |access-date=2023-06-25 |archive-date=25 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625162609/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-north-korea-constitution-idUSKCN1VJ1JQ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea|8th WPK Congress]] held in 2021 marked the consolidation of WPK control over the army, as well as a further decrease in the army's power; the number of military delegates dropped from 719 in the 7th Congress to 408.<ref name=":6" /> Politburo members increased from 28 to 30, though incumbent military elite membership decreased from eight to six. "Military-first policy" was also removed from the charter, being replaced by "people-first politics".<ref name=":5"/> During the speech to the Congress, Kim Jong Un did not mention "army of the leader" to refer to the KPA, as it has been referred as before, instead naming it as an "army of the party", thus moving the party-army relations in the country closer to the ones typically found in other socialist states.<ref name=":6" />

The influence of the KPA Party Committee and the GPB was decreased; with the committee now ranking equal to provincial party committees. The GPB was also no longer equal to the Central Committee, while the CMC was again given effective command of the armed forces.<ref name=":6" /> The Military Affairs Department of the WPK Central Committee was abolished, with its functions being transferred to the Department of Military-Political Leadership.<ref name=":6" />

===Ground force formations===
*[[I Corps (North Korea)|I Corps]] ([[Hoeyang County]], [[Kangwon Province (North Korea)|Kangwon Province]])
*[[II Corps (North Korea)|II Corps]] ([[Pyongsan County]], [[North Hwanghae Province]])
*[[III Corps (North Korea)|III Corps]] ([[Nampo]], [[South Pyongan Province]])
*[[IV Corps (North Korea)|IV Corps]] ([[Haeju]], [[South Hwanghae Province]])
*[[V Corps (North Korea)|V Corps]] ([[Sepo County]], [[Kangwon Province (North Korea)|Kangwon Province]])
*[[VII Corps (North Korea)|VII Corps]] ([[Hamhung]], [[South Hamgyong Province]])
*[[Pyongyang Defense Command]]
*[[XII Corps (North Korea)|XII Corps]]
*[[IX Corps (North Korea)|IX Corps]] ([[Chongjin]], [[North Hamgyong Province]])
*[[X Corps (North Korea)|X Corps]] ([[Hyesan]], [[Ryanggang Province]])
*[[XI Corps (North Korea)|XI Corps]] ([[Tokchon]], [[South Pyongan Province]])
*Mechanised infantry divisions:
**[[108th Division (North Korea)|108th Division]]
**[[425th Division (North Korea)|425th Division]]
**[[806th Division (North Korea|806th Division]]
**[[815th Division (North Korea)|815th Division]]
*[[820th Tank Corps (North Korea)|820th Tank Corps]]

===Conscription and terms of service===
[[File:Korean People's Army Soldiers prepare to repatriate remains during a repatriation ceremony at the Panmunjom Joint Security Area on 981106-F-AF179-013.jpg|thumb|North Korean soldiers at Panmunjom]]
{{Further|Conscription in North Korea}}
[[Conscription in North Korea|North Korea has conscription]] for males for 10 years. Females are conscripted up until the age of 23.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Choi|first=Song Min|date=2015-01-31|title=North Korea introduces 'mandatory military service for women'|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/31/north-korea-mandatory-military-service-women|access-date=2021-10-02|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref> Article 86 of the [[Constitution of North Korea|North Korean Constitution]] states: "National defence is the supreme duty and honour of citizens.
Citizens shall defend the country and serve in the armed forces as
required by law."<ref>{{cite book|chapter=Chapter V, Article 86 |title=Socialist Constitution of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea |url=http://www.naenara.com.kp/en/book/download.php?4+4047 |year=2014 |publisher=[[Foreign Languages Publishing House (North Korea)|Foreign Languages Publishing House]] |location=Pyongyang |isbn=978-9946-0-1099-1 |page=18 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160608030306/http://www.naenara.com.kp/en/book/download.php?4+4047 |archive-date=8 June 2016|postscript=&nbsp; }} Amended and supplemented on 1 April, Juche 102 (2013), at the Seventh Session of the Twelfth Supreme People's Assembly.</ref>

KPA soldiers serve three years of military service in the KPA, which also runs its own factories, farms and trading arms.<ref name="nytimes.com">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/world/asia/kim-jong-un-hailed-as-supreme-commander-of-north-koreas-military.html |title=Kim Jong-un Hailed as Supreme Commander of North Korea's Military |last=Choe |first=Sang-hun |date=24 December 2011 |access-date=11 June 2017 |work=[[The New York Times]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220060517/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/25/world/asia/kim-jong-un-hailed-as-supreme-commander-of-north-koreas-military.html |archive-date=20 December 2016 }}</ref>

====Paramilitary organisations====
The [[Red Youth Guards]] are the youth cadet corps of the KPA for secondary level and university level students. Every Saturday, they hold mandatory 4-hour military training drills, and have training activities on and off campus to prepare them for military service when they turn 18 or after graduation, as well as for contingency measures in peacetime.

Under the [[Ministry of Social Security (North Korea)|Ministry of Social Security]] and the wartime control of the [[Ministry of Defence (North Korea)|Ministry of Defence]], and formerly the Korean People's Security Forces, the Korean People's Social Security Forces (KPSSF) forms the national gendarmerie and civil defence force of the KPA. The KPSSF has its units in various fields like civil defence, traffic management, civil disturbance control, and local security. It has its own special forces units. The service shares the ranks of the KPA (with the exception of Marshals) but wears different uniforms.

The [[Reserve Military Training Units]] or RMTUs constitute the primary reserve force component of the KPA.

The [[Worker-Peasant Red Guards]] (WPRG; {{Korean|hangul=로농적위군|labels=no}}), also translated as Workers and Peasants' Red Militia (WPRM), is a paramilitary force in North Korea. It is the largest civil defense force in North Korea. It is not only under State Affairs Commission (until 2016 National Defence Commission) and Ministry of Defence control, but is also attached to the Workers' Party of Korea under its Military Leadership Department. It is thus responsible to the Supreme Leader in his capacity as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. The militia is organized on a provincial/city/town/village level, and structured on a brigade, battalion, company, and platoon basis. The militia maintains infantry small arms, with some mortars, field guns and anti-aircraft guns and even modernized older equipment such as multiple rocket launchers like the BM-13 and older Ural D-62 motorcycles, although some units are unarmed indicating status as logistics and medical units. Its strength is estimated at 5 million personnel.

===Budget and commercial interests===
[[File:Tank in the DPRK Victory Day Parade.jpg|thumb|Korean People's Army [[BTR-80]]-vehicles on parade]]
The KPA's annual budget is approximately US$6&nbsp;billion. In 2009, the U.S. [[Institute for Science and International Security]] reported that North Korea may possess [[fissile material]] for around two to nine [[nuclear warheads]].<ref>[http://isis-online.org/mapproject/country_pages/northkorea.html ISIS Fast Facts on North Korea] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417012341/http://www.isis-online.org/mapproject/country_pages/northkorea.html |date=17 April 2009 }}. Retrieved 21 April 2009.</ref>{{Update inline|date=June 2022}} The North Korean ''[[Songun]]'' ("Military First") policy elevates the KPA to the primary position in the government and society.

According to [[Korean Central News Agency|North Korea's state news agency]], military expenditures for 2010 made up 15.8 percent of the state budget.<ref name= "kcna2010budget">{{cite web|title=Report on Implementation of 2009 Budget and 2010 Budget |url=http://kcna.co.jp/item/2010/201004/news09/20100409-10ee.html |agency=[[Korean Central News Agency]] |date=9 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429044154/http://kcna.co.jp/item/2010/201004/news09/20100409-10ee.html |archive-date=29 April 2011 }}</ref> Most analyses of North Korea's defence sector, however, estimate that defence spending constitutes between one-quarter and one-third of all government spending. {{As of|2003}}, according to the [[International Institute of Strategic Studies]], North Korea's defence budget consumed some 25 percent of central government spending.<ref>{{cite book|title = Military Balance, 2004–2005|pages = 353–357|editor-first = Christopher |editor-last =Langton|author = International Institute for Strategic Studies| year=2004 |publisher = Oxford University Press|isbn = 9780198566229}}</ref> In the mid-1970s and early 1980s, according to figures released by the Polish Arms Control and Disarmament Agency, between 32 and 38 percent of central government expenditures went towards defence.<ref>{{cite book|last = Scobell|title =Going Out of Business: Divesting the Commercial Interests of Asia's Socialist Soldiers|pages = 14, Table 2, p. 17|first = Andrew|publisher =East-West Center|date = 2000}}</ref>

[[File:Cho Myong-nok and Bill Clinton.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Vice Marshal [[Jo Myong-rok]] meets [[Bill Clinton]] at the White House, October 2000]]
North Korea sells missiles and military equipment to many countries worldwide.<ref name="IAR 26 March">{{cite web |last1=Bradley Martin |first1=Bradley Martin |title=The Regime That Will Not Die: The North Korean Hybrid Threat |url=http://www.iar-gwu.org/node/476 |publisher=International Affairs Review |access-date=26 March 2013 |date=25 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328102710/http://www.iar-gwu.org/node/476 |archive-date=28 March 2013 }}</ref> In April 2009, the [[United Nations]] named the [[Korea Mining and Development Trading Corporation]] (KOMID) as North Korea's primary arms dealer and main exporter of equipment related to ballistic missiles and conventional weapons. It also named [[Ryonbong|Korea Ryonbong]] as a supporter of North Korea's military related sales.<ref name="komid-un">{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/sc/committees/1718/pdf/List%2016%20July%202009.pdf |title=UN Listing of KOMID and Ryonbong |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103050830/http://www.un.org/sc/committees/1718/pdf/List%2016%20July%202009.pdf |archive-date=3 November 2012 }}</ref>

Historically, North Korea has assisted a vast number of revolutionary, insurgent and terrorist groups in more than 62 countries. A cumulative total of more than 5,000 foreign personnel have been trained in North Korea, and over 7,000 military advisers, primarily from the [[Reconnaissance General Bureau]], have been dispatched to some forty-seven countries. Some of the organisations which received North Korean aid include the [[Polisario Front]], [[Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna]], the [[Communist Party of Thailand]], the [[Palestine Liberation Organization]] and the [[Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps]]. The [[5th Brigade (Zimbabwe)|Zimbabwean Fifth Brigade]] received its initial training from KPA instructors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0156)|title=Relations with the Third World|work=North Korea Country Study|publisher=[[Library of Congress]] Country Studies|year=1993|access-date=2 September 2012|archive-date=4 July 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150704050821/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0156)|url-status=live}}</ref> North Korean troops allegedly saw combat during the [[Libyan–Egyptian War]] and the [[Angolan Civil War]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-663.html |title=Angola – Foreign Influences |publisher=Country-data.com |access-date=17 August 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510222544/http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-663.html |archive-date=10 May 2012 }}</ref> Up to 200 KPAF pilots took part in the [[Vietnam War]],<ref>''Asia Times'', 18 August 2006, Richard M Bennett [https://web.archive.org/web/20060923224111/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/HH18Dg02.html Missiles and madness].</ref> scoring several kills against U.S. aircraft.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_245.shtml |title=Vietnamese Air-to-Air Victories, Part 1 |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209163433/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_245.shtml |archive-date=9 February 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_246.shtml |title=Vietnamese Air-to-Air Victories, Part 2 (ACIG.org) |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130304225827/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_246.shtml |archive-date=4 March 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_177.shtml |title=Far Eastern Air-to-Air Victories (ACIG.org) |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226133922/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_177.shtml |archive-date=26 February 2014 }}</ref> Two KPA anti-aircraft artillery regiments were sent to [[North Vietnam]] as well.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Pribbenow|first=Merle|title=The 'Ology War: technology and ideology in the defense of Hanoi, 1967|journal=Journal of Military History|volume=67|number=1|year=2003|page=183|doi=10.1353/jmh.2003.0066|s2cid=154785819|doi-access=free}}</ref>

North Korean instructors trained [[Hezbollah]] fighters in [[guerrilla warfare]] tactics around 2004, prior to the [[Second Lebanon War]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Farquhar |first=Scott |title=Back to Basics: A Study of the Second Lebanon War and Operation CAST LEAD |publisher=Combat Studies Institute Press |page=9 |url=http://www.cgsc.edu/carl/download/csipubs/farquhar.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111013021642/http://cgsc.edu/carl/download/csipubs/farquhar.pdf |archive-date=13 October 2011 |accessdate=2 September 2012 }}</ref> During the [[Syrian Civil War]], Arabic-speaking KPA officers may have assisted the [[Syrian Army|Syrian Arab Army]] in military operations planning and have supervised artillery bombardments in the [[Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)|Battle of Aleppo]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/06/05/2013060501134.html |title=N.Korean Officers 'Helping Syrian Gov't Forces' |newspaper=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |date=5 June 2013 |access-date=26 August 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130813023441/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2013/06/05/2013060501134.html |archive-date=13 August 2013}}</ref>

==Service branches==

===Ground Force===
[[File:SPG M-1978 KOKSAN.JPG|thumb|[[Koksan (artillery)|Koksan]], one of North Korea's principal heavy artillery pieces. This example was photographed in Iraq.]]
[[File:DMZ seen from the north, 2005.jpg|thumb|North Korean soldiers standing at the [[Joint Security Area]] between the blue buildings]]
{{Main|Korean People's Army Ground Force}}
The Korean People's Army Ground Force (KPAGF) is the main branch of the Korean People's Army responsible for land-based military operations. It is the ''de facto'' army of North Korea.

===Naval Force===
{{Main|Korean People's Navy}}
The Korean People's Army Naval Force (KPANF) is organized into two fleets (West Fleet and East Fleet, the latter being the larger of the two) which, owing to the limited range and general disrepair of their vessels, are not able to support each other, let alone meet for joint operations.<ref>Bermudez (2001), p. 101.</ref> The East Fleet is headquartered at [[T'oejo-dong]] and the West Fleet at [[Nampho]]. A number of training, shipbuilding and maintenance units and a naval air wing report directly to Naval Command Headquarters at [[Pyongyang]].<ref>Bermudez (2001), p. 93–95.</ref>

===Air and Anti-Air Force===
[[File:Mig17-north korea.jpg|thumb|A former Indonesian [[Lim-5]] on display in the United States in North Korean markings]]
{{Main|Korean People's Army Air Force}}
The Korean People's Army Air Force (KPAF) is also responsible for North Korea's air and space defense forces through the use of anti-aircraft artillery,  [[surface-to-air missile]]s (SAM) and satellites. Until April 2022, it was known as the KPA Air and Anti-Air Force. While much of the equipment is outdated, the high saturation of multilayered, overlapping, mutually supporting air defence sites provides a formidable challenge to enemy air attacks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0138)|title=Air Defense|work=North Korea Country Study|publisher=[[Library of Congress Country Studies]]|year=1993|access-date=2 September 2012|archive-date=9 January 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109103626/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+kp0138)|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Strategic Force===
{{Main|Korean People's Army Strategic Force}}

The Strategic Force is a major division of the KPA that controls North Korea's nuclear and conventional strategic missiles. It is mainly equipped with [[surface-to-surface missile]]s of Soviet and Chinese design, as well as locally developed long-range missiles.

===Special Operation Force===
{{Main|Korean People's Army Special Operation Force}}
The Korean People's Army Special Operation Force (KPASOF) is an [[Asymmetric warfare|asymmetric force]] with a total troop size of 200,000. Since the [[Korean War]], it has continued to play a role of concentrating infiltration of troops into the territory of South Korea and conducting sabotage.<ref name="1960s">Bolger, Daniel P., "Scenes from an Unfinished War: Low-Intensity Conflict in Korea, 1966–1969", Leavenworth Papers No. 19, Combat Studies Institute, U.S. Army Command and General Staff College, ''Financial Times''. Leavenworth, Kansas, p. 86.</ref>

==Capabilities==
[[File:North Korean Semi-submersible SP-10.jpg|thumb|A semi-submersible infiltration craft used by North Korean special forces in the 1980s{{citation needed|date=October 2017|reason=WP:RS needed; removed link to WP}}]]

After the Korean War, North Korea maintained a powerful, but smaller military force than that of South Korea. In 1967 the KPA forces of about 345,000 were much smaller than the South Korean ground forces of about 585,000.<ref name=cia-19670921>{{cite report |pages=7, 11 |url=http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/89801/DOC_0001218147.pdf |title=North Korean Intentions and Capabilities With Respect to South Korea |id=SNIE 14.2–67 |publisher=[[CIA]] |date=21 September 1967 |access-date=13 March 2017 }}{{Dead link|date=March 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> North Korea's relative isolation and economic plight starting from the 1980s has now tipped the balance of military power into the hands of the better-equipped South Korean military.<ref name="IAR 26 March"/> In response to this predicament, North Korea relies on [[asymmetric warfare]] techniques and unconventional weaponry to achieve parity against high-tech enemy forces.<ref name="IAR 26 March"/> North Korea is reported to have developed a wide range of technologies towards this end, such as [[stealth technology|stealth]] paint to conceal ground targets,<ref name="telegraph.co.uk">[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/7960218/North-Korea-develops-stealth-paint-to-camouflage-fighter-jets.html North Korea 'develops stealth paint to camouflage fighter jets'] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140916214022/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/7960218/North-Korea-develops-stealth-paint-to-camouflage-fighter-jets.html |date=16 September 2014 }}, ''The Daily Telegraph'', 23 August 2010.</ref> [[midget submarine]]s and [[human torpedo]]es,<ref>[http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk02500&num=6463 North Korea's Human Torpedoes] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140830193719/http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk02500&num=6463 |date=30 August 2014 }}, ''Daily NK'', 6 May 2010.</ref> [[Laser weapon|blinding laser weapons]],<ref name="CNN"/> and probably has a [[chemical weapon]]s program and is likely to possess a stockpile of chemical weapons.<ref name=DOD-DPRK-2012A>{{cite report|url=http://www.defense.gov/pubs/ReporttoCongressonMilitaryandSecurityDevelopmentsInvolvingtheDPRK.pdf |title=Military and Security Developments Involving the Democratic People's Republic of Korea |publisher=U.S. Department of Defense |year=2012 |access-date=23 May 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130610202652/http://www.defense.gov/pubs/ReporttoCongressonMilitaryandSecurityDevelopmentsInvolvingtheDPRK.pdf |archive-date=10 June 2013 }}</ref> The Korean People's Army operates [[ZM-87]] anti-personnel lasers, which are banned under the United Nations [[Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons]].<ref name="CNN">[http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/24/north.korea.capability/index.html North Korea's military aging but sizable] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903021838/http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/11/24/north.korea.capability/index.html |date=3 September 2014 }}, CNN, 25 November 2010.</ref>

Since the 1980s, North Korea has also been actively developing its own [[cyber warfare]] capabilities. {{As of| 2014}}, the secretive [[Bureau 121]] – the elite North Korean cyber warfare unit – comprises approximately 1,800 highly trained hackers. In December 2014, the Bureau was accused of [[Sony Pictures hack|hacking Sony Pictures]] and making threats, leading to the cancellation of ''[[The Interview]]'', a political satire comedy film based on the assassination of Kim Jong Un.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-sony-cybersecurity-northkorea-idUSKCN0JJ08B20141205 |title=In North Korea, hackers are a handpicked, pampered elite |date=5 December 2014 |access-date=19 December 2014 |work=Reuters |last1=Pearson |first1=James |last2=Park |first2=Ju-min |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141219023843/http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/12/05/us-sony-cybersecurity-northkorea-idUSKCN0JJ08B20141205 |archive-date=19 December 2014 }}</ref> The Korean People's Army has also made advances in [[electronic warfare]] by developing [[GPS]] jammers.<ref>https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/09/north-korea-accused-of-gps-jamming-attacks-on-south-korean-ships-and-aircraft</ref><ref>https://www.nknews.org/2025/07/north-korea-jams-gps-signals-near-maritime-border-leading-rok-to-warn-ships/</ref> Current models include vehicle-mounted jammers with a range of {{convert|50|km}}–{{convert|100|km}}. Jammers with a range of more than 100&nbsp;km are being developed, along with [[Emp bomb|electromagnetic pulse bombs]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/09/07/2011090700649.html |title=N.Korea Developing High-Powered GPS Jammer |newspaper=[[The Chosun Ilbo]] |date=7 September 2011 |access-date=8 September 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924042157/http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2011/09/07/2011090700649.html |archive-date=24 September 2012 }}</ref> The Korean People's Army has also made attempts to jam South Korean military satellites.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=10043 |title=Satellite in Alleged NK Jamming Attack |newspaper=[[Daily NK]] |date=15 November 2012 |access-date=12 December 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006114925/http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=10043 |archive-date=6 October 2014 }}</ref> North Korea does not have satellites capable of obtaining [[satellite imagery]] useful for military purposes, and appears to use imagery from foreign commercial platforms.<ref>{{cite news |work=[[United Press International]] |quote=Hansen added North Korea does not have a satellite capable of taking photos and may have had no choice but to purchase satellite images from an overseas internet website. |title=Expert: Guam image in Kim Jong Un photo from 6 years ago |first=Elizabeth |url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2017/08/17/Expert-Guam-image-in-Kim-Jong-Un-photo-from-6-years-ago/8441502945528/?nll=1 |last=Shim |date=17 August 2017 |access-date=29 August 2017 |archive-date=30 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830005544/http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2017/08/17/Expert-Guam-image-in-Kim-Jong-Un-photo-from-6-years-ago/8441502945528/?nll=1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Despite the general fuel and ammunition shortages for training, it is estimated that the wartime strategic reserves of food for the army are sufficient to feed the regular troops for 500 days, while fuel and ammunition – amounting to 1.5&nbsp;million and 1.7&nbsp;million tonnes respectively – are sufficient to wage a full-scale war for 100 days.<ref>[http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=7542 Lawmaker Points to 1 Million Tons of War Rice] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110410091351/http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=7542 |date=10 April 2011 }}, ''Daily NK'', 7 April 2011.</ref>

The KPA does not operate [[aircraft carrier]]s, but has other means of [[power projection]]. Korean People's Air Force [[Il-76MD]] aircraft provide a strategic airlift capacity of 6,000 troops, while the Navy's sea lift capacity amounts to 15,000 troops.<ref>2009 North Korea Country Study, p. 252.</ref> The [[Strategic Rocket Forces (North Korea)|Strategic Rocket Forces]] operate more than 1,000 ballistic missiles according to South Korean officials in 2010,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-korea-north-missiles-idUSTRE62G1ZC20100317 |work=Reuters |title=North Korea has 1,000 missiles, South says |date=17 March 2010 |first=Jack |last=Kim |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016015037/http://www.reuters.com/article/2010/03/17/us-korea-north-missiles-idUSTRE62G1ZC20100317 |archive-date=16 October 2015 }}</ref> although the [[U.S. Department of Defense]] reported in 2012 that North Korea has fewer than 200 missile launchers.<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" /> North Korea acquired 12 [[Foxtrot class submarine|Foxtrot class]] and [[Golf class submarine|Golf-II class]] missile submarines as scrap in 1993.<ref name="North Korea's New Missiles">{{cite web|url=http://www.strategycenter.net/research/pubID.3/pub_detail.asp |title=North Korea's New Missiles |publisher=International Assessment and Strategy Center |date=20 September 2004 |access-date=8 September 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109031854/http://www.strategycenter.net/research/pubID.3/pub_detail.asp |archive-date=9 November 2012 }}</ref> Some analysts suggest that these have either been refurbished with the help of Russian experts or their launch tubes have been reverse-engineered and externally fitted to regular submarines or cargo ships.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=1644 |title=North Korea Develops a Submarine Missile With Shooting Range 2,500km |publisher=[[Daily NK]] |date=2 July 2007 |access-date=8 September 2012 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121119023752/http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk00100&num=1644 |archive-date=19 November 2012 }}</ref> However the [[U.S. Department of Defense]] does not list them as active.<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" />

A photograph of [[Kim Jong Un]] receiving a briefing from his top generals on 29 March 2013 showed a list that purported to show that the military had a minimum of 40 submarines, 13 landing ships, 6 minesweepers, 27 support vessels and 1,852 aircraft.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2013/03/29/0200000000AEN20130329008800315.HTML |title=N. Korea's photo offers glimpse of major weapons |publisher=[[Yonhap News Agency]] |date=29 March 2013 |access-date=29 March 2013 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130401081139/http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2013/03/29/0200000000AEN20130329008800315.HTML |archive-date=1 April 2013 }}</ref>

The Korean People's Army operates a very large amount of equipment, including 4,100 [[tank]]s, 2,100 [[Armoured personnel carrier|APCs]], 8,500 [[field artillery]] pieces, 5,100 [[multiple rocket launcher]]s,<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" /> 11,000 air defence guns and some 10,000 [[MANPADS]] and [[anti-tank guided missile]]s<ref>[http://www.soldiering.ru/country/guide2003/army-09.php Армии стран мира : К] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006112837/http://www.soldiering.ru/country/guide2003/army-09.php |date=6 October 2014 }}, soldiering.ru.</ref> in the Ground force; about 500 vessels in the Navy<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" /> and 730 combat aircraft in the Air Force,<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" /> of which 478 are fighters and 180 are bombers.<ref>[http://www.milaviapress.com/orbat/northkorea/index.php Order of Battle – North Korea] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120608000857/http://www.milaviapress.com/orbat/northkorea/index.php |date=8 June 2012 }}, MilAviaPress.</ref> North Korea also has the largest special forces in the world, as well as the largest [[submarine]] fleet.<ref>[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf/CS_North-Korea.pdf North Korea Country Study (2009)] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202052752/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf/CS_North-Korea.pdf |date=2 December 2010 }}, Library of Congress, pp. 288–293 (on PDF reader).</ref> The equipment is a mixture of [[World War II]] vintage vehicles and small arms, widely proliferated [[Cold War]] technology, and more modern Soviet or locally produced weapons.

In March 2024, Kim Jong Un was pictured driving a newly developed tank alongside soldiers taking part in drills which the leader said was preparation for war.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-14 |title=North Korea's Kim drives new-type tank during drills and calls for efforts to prepare for war |url=https://apnews.com/article/north-korea-kim-tank-training-us-south-244d613ea6dfaa0a38cffcb3dddc8f06 |access-date=2024-03-14 |website=AP News |language=en |archive-date=14 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240314093406/https://apnews.com/article/north-korea-kim-tank-training-us-south-244d613ea6dfaa0a38cffcb3dddc8f06 |url-status=live }}</ref>

North Korea possesses a vast array of long range artillery in shelters just north of the [[Korean Demilitarized Zone]]. It has been a long-standing cause for concern that a preemptive strike or retaliatory strike on [[Seoul]] using this arsenal of artillery north of the Demilitarized Zone would lead to a massive loss of life in Seoul. One estimate projected hundreds of thousands or possibly millions of fatalities if North Korea uses chemical or nuclear munitions.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://thebulletin.org/sea-sarin-north-korea%E2%80%99s-chemical-deterrent10856|title=Sea of sarin: North Korea's chemical deterrent|date=21 June 2017|work=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists|access-date=23 September 2017|archive-date=20 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170920175018/http://thebulletin.org/sea-sarin-north-korea%E2%80%99s-chemical-deterrent10856|url-status=dead}}</ref> A RAND Corporation conducted an extensive study in 2020 on a range of potential artillery bombardment scenarios and concluded that a strike on Seoul alone could result in over 100,000 casualties in the first hour of bombardment.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Barnett |first1=D. Sean |last2=Crane |first2=Yvonne K. |last3=Gentile |first3=Gian |last4=Bonds |first4=Timothy M. |last5=Madden |first5=Dan |last6=Pfrommer |first6=Katherine |date=2020-08-06 |title=North Korean Conventional Artillery: A Means to Retaliate, Coerce, Deter, or Terrorize Populations |url=https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA619-1.html |language=en |access-date=24 June 2022 |archive-date=15 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220615023524/https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA619-1.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Military equipment==

===Weapons===
{{see also|List of equipment of the Korean People's Army Ground Force}}
The KPA possess a variety of Chinese and Soviet sourced equipment and weaponry, as well as locally produced versions and improvements of the former.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Bird |first1=Mike |title=This is the military equipment that the North Korean military's packing |url=http://uk.businessinsider.com/military-equipment-of-the-north-korean-military-2015-4?IR=T |access-date=30 May 2017 |work=Business Insider |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160804171131/http://uk.businessinsider.com/military-equipment-of-the-north-korean-military-2015-4?IR=T |archive-date=4 August 2016 }}</ref> Soldiers are mostly armed with indigenous [[Kalashnikov rifle|Kalashnikov-type rifles]] as the standard issue weapon. Front line troops are issued the [[AK-74|Type 88]], while the older [[Type 58 assault rifle]] and [[Type 68 assault rifle (North Korea)|Type 68A/B]] have been shifted to rear echelon or home guard units.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Shea |first1=Dan |title=North Korean Small Arms |url=http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=1785&page=3 |website=Small Arms Defense Journal |access-date=30 May 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170614133222/http://www.sadefensejournal.com/wp/?p=1785&page=3 |archive-date=14 June 2017 }}</ref>
A rifle of unknown nomenclature was seen during the 2017 [[Day of the Sun]] military parade, appearing to consist of a grenade launcher and a standard assault rifle, similar to the U.S. [[OICW]] or South Korean [[S&T Daewoo K11]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=F |first1=Nathaniel |title=North Korean 'OICW' Combined Assault Rifle and Automatic Grenade Launcher Revealed During Day of the Sun Parade |url=http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017/04/21/north-korean-oicw-combined-assault-rifle-automatic-grenade-launcher-revealed-day-sun-parade/ |website=The Firearm Blog |date=21 April 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170619060354/http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2017/04/21/north-korean-oicw-combined-assault-rifle-automatic-grenade-launcher-revealed-day-sun-parade/ |archive-date=19 June 2017 }}</ref>
North Korea generally designates rifles as "Type XX", similar to the Chinese naming system. On 15 November 2018, North Korea successfully tested a "newly developed ultramodern tactical weapon".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Foster |first=Klug |date=November 15, 2018 |title=North Korea tests new weapon amid stalled nuclear diplomacy |work=The Associated Press |url=https://apnews.com/article/957a7ebc55554e32bfb7681f5609b5f8 |access-date=November 15, 2018 |archive-date=25 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230825144125/https://apnews.com/article/957a7ebc55554e32bfb7681f5609b5f8 |url-status=live }}</ref> Leader Kim Jong Un observed the test at the Academy of Defense Science and called it a "decisive turn"{{quote without source|date=December 2021}} in bolstering the combat power of the North Korean army.

There is a Korean People's Army Military Hardware Museum located in Pyongyang that displays a range of the equipment used.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Naenara Democratic People's Republic of Korea|url=http://www.naenara.com.kp/main/index/en/tourism|access-date=2020-10-22|website=[[Naenara]]|archive-date=23 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201023232755/http://www.naenara.com.kp/main/index/en/tourism|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Chemical weapons===
{{Main|North Korea and weapons of mass destruction}}
The [[U.S. Department of Defense]] believes North Korea probably has a [[chemical weapon]]s program and is likely to possess a stockpile of such weapons.<ref name="DOD-DPRK-2012A" />

====Nuclear capabilities====
{{Main|Intercontinental ballistic missile}}
[[File:North Korea's ballistic missile - North Korea Victory Day-2013 02.jpg|thumb|North Korean ballistic missiles]]
North Korea has tested a series of different missiles, including [[Short-range ballistic missile|short-]], [[Medium-range ballistic missile|medium-]], [[Intermediate-range ballistic missile|intermediate-]], and [[Intercontinental ballistic missile|intercontinental-range]], and [[submarine-launched ballistic missile]]s. Estimates of the country's nuclear stockpile vary: some experts, such as Hans M. Kristensen and Matt Korda{{Who|date=May 2021}} believe Pyongyang may have assembled between twenty and thirty [[nuclear weapon]]s, while U.S. intelligence believes the number to be between thirty and sixty.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kristensen |first=Hans M. |date=2022 |title=North Korean nuclear weapons |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/00963402.2022.2109341 |journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists |volume=78 |issue=5 |pages=273–294|doi=10.1080/00963402.2022.2109341 |s2cid=252132124 |url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Stockholm International Peace Research Institute |title=SIPRI 2019 Yearbook: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security |publisher=Stockholm International Peach Research Institute |year=2019 |isbn=9780198839996 |location=Oxford, UK}}</ref> The regime conducted two tests of an [[intercontinental ballistic missile]] (ICBM) capable of carrying a large nuclear warhead in July 2017. The Pentagon confirmed North Korea's ICBM tests, and analysts estimate that the new missile has a potential range of {{convert|10400|km|miles}} and, if fired on a flatter trajectory, could be capable of reaching mainland U.S. territory.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Albert|first1=Eleanor|title=North Korea's Military Capabilities|url=https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/north-koreas-military-capabilities|website=Council on Foreign Relations|access-date=7 October 2017|archive-date=20 June 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170620172751/https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/north-koreas-military-capabilities|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Kristensen |first=Hans M. |date=2018 |title=North Korean nuclear capabilities |journal=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists |volume=74 |issue=1 |pages=41–51|doi=10.1080/00963402.2017.1413062 |s2cid=148825894 |doi-access=free }}</ref>{{additional citation needed|date=May 2023}}

====Nuclear tests====
{{Main|North Korean nuclear program}}
On 9 October 2006, the North Korean government announced that it had unsuccessfully attempted [[2006 North Korean nuclear test|a nuclear test]] for the first time. Experts at the [[United States Geological Survey]] and Japanese seismological authorities detected an earthquake with a preliminary estimated magnitude of 4.3 from the site in North Korea, proving the official claims to be true.<ref name="USGS Recent Earth Quakes">{{cite report |url=https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2006/ustqab/ |title=Magnitude 4.3—North Korea (2006 October 09 01:35:28 UTC) |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]] (USGS) |date=9 October 2006 |access-date=1 December 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140427050803/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqinthenews/2006/ustqab/ |archive-date=27 April 2014  }}</ref>

North Korea also went on to claim that it had developed a nuclear weapon in 2009. It is widely believed to possess a stockpile of relatively simple nuclear weapons. The [[IAEA]] has met {{ill|Ri Je-son|ko|리제선}}, the Director General of the General Department of Atomic Energy (GDAE) of North Korea, to discuss nuclear matters.<ref>[http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC56/GC56Documents/English/gc56-11_en.pdf Application of Safeguards in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131125223525/http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC56/GC56Documents/English/gc56-11_en.pdf |date=25 November 2013 }} IAEA – Board of Governors General Conference.</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/apr/4/nuke-agency-wary-of-n-koreas-invitation/ |title=Nuke agency wary of N. Korea's invitation |newspaper=[[The Washington Times]] |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227231722/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/apr/4/nuke-agency-wary-of-n-koreas-invitation/ |archive-date=27 February 2017 }}</ref> Ri Je-son was also mentioned in this role in 2002 in a United Nations article.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=5644&Cr=dprk&Cr1= |title=UN News – DPR of Korea informs IAEA of intent to lift 'freeze' on nuclear power plants |first=United Nations News Service |last=Section |date=12 December 2002 |website=UN News Service Section |access-date=11 June 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160411145908/http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=5644&Cr=dprk&Cr1= |archive-date=11 April 2016 }}</ref>

On 3 September 2017, the North Korean leadership announced that it had conducted [[2017 North Korean nuclear test|a nuclear test]] with what it claimed to be its first [[Thermonuclear weapon|hydrogen bomb]] detonation.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/03/asia/north-korea-nuclear-test/index.html|title=Nuclear test conducted by North Korea, country claims|author1=Joshua Berlinger|author2=Taehoon Lee|date=3 September 2017|publisher=CNN|access-date=3 September 2017|archive-date=4 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170904050138/http://www.cnn.com/2017/09/03/asia/north-korea-nuclear-test/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The detonation took place at an underground location at the [[Punggye-ri Nuclear Test Site|Punggye-ri nuclear test site]] in [[North Hamgyong Province]] at 12:00&nbsp;pm local time.<ref name="38north.org">{{cite web|url=http://www.38north.org/2017/09/nuke090317/|title=Sixth Nuclear Test Detected at Punggye-ri, Declared to be a Hydrogen Bomb|date=3 September 2017|access-date=3 September 2017|archive-date=15 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615224849/https://www.38north.org/2017/09/nuke090317/|url-status=live}}</ref> South Korean officials claimed the test yielded 50 kilotons of explosive force, with many international observers claiming the test likely involved some form of a thermonuclear reaction.<ref name="38north.org"/>

* [[2006 North Korean nuclear test]]
* [[2009 North Korean nuclear test]]
* [[2013 North Korean nuclear test]]
* [[January 2016 North Korean nuclear test]]
* [[September 2016 North Korean nuclear test]]
* [[September 2017 North Korean nuclear test]]

====Other====
* [[Tonghae Satellite Launching Ground]]
* [[Ryanggang explosion]]
* [[Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center]]
* ''[[Songun]]''
* [[Asymmetric warfare]]
* The launching of [[Kwangmyŏngsŏng-3]] and [[Kwangmyŏngsŏng-3 Unit 2]] in 2012.

===Uniforms===

KPA officers and soldiers are most often seen wearing a mix of olive green or tan uniforms. The basic dress uniform consists of a tunic and pants (white tunics for general officers in special occasions); female soldiers wear knee length skirts but can sometimes wear pants.

Caps or peaked caps, especially for officers (and sometimes berets for women) are worn in spring and summer months and a Russian style fur hat (the [[Ushanka]] hats) in winter. Variants of the British [[Disruptive Pattern Material]], Australian [[Disruptive Pattern Camouflage Uniform]], United States [[ERDL pattern]], [[US Woodland]], and [[tiger stripe camouflage|tiger stripe]] camouflage patterns have also been worn in a few and rare images of North Korean army officers and service personnel.

In non-dress uniforms, a steel helmet (the North Korean produced Type 40 helmet, a copy of the Soviet [[SSh-40|SSH40]]) seems to be the most common headgear, and is sometimes worn with a camouflage covering. During the 15 April 2012 parade, [[Kevlar]] helmets were displayed in certain KPA units and similar helmets are currently used by KPA special operations forces.

Standard military boots are worn for combat, women wear low heel shoes or heel boots for formal parades.

During the [[Military parades in North Korea#2020|parade on 10 October 2020]], a range of at least five new pixelated camouflage patterns and new soldiers' combat gear such as body armor, bulletproof helmets of all branches were shown for the first time. Even though it was difficult to tell the patterns apart from each other, two different green based designs, an arid camouflage design, blue camouflage design, and a two-color pixelated camouflage pattern for mountain and winter warfare were all observed. Also, the use of [[MultiCam]] pattern uniforms by North Korean military personnel was first documented in 2020 during the same parade, although uniforms in this design may well have appeared in the armed forces inventory much earlier.

==See also==
{{portal|North Korea}}
* [[April 25 Sports Club]]
* [[Central Military Band of the Korean People's Army]]
* ''[[Joson Inmingun]]''
* [[Korean conflict]]
* [[Military Foundation Day]]
* [[Republic of Korea Armed Forces]]
* ''[[Songun]]''
* [[Worker-Peasant Red Guards]]

==References==

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |title=Shield of the Great Leader. The Armed Forces of North Korea |last=Bermudez |first=Joseph S. |year=2001 |publisher=Allen & Unwin |location=Sydney | series=The Armed Forces of Asia |isbn=978-1-86448-582-0 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Hodge |first1=Homer T. |title=North Korea's Military Strategy |journal=The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters |date=2003 |volume=33 |issue=1 |pages=68–81 |doi=10.55540/0031-1723.2131|doi-access=free}}
* {{cite book |last=[[The International Institute for Strategic Studies]] (IISS) |title=The Military Balance 2007 |year=2007 |publisher=Routledge Journals |location=[[Abingdon, Oxfordshire|Abingdon]] |isbn=978-1-85743-437-8 }}
* {{cite book |title=Jane's World Air Forces. Issue 25, 2007|publisher=[[Jane's Information Group]] |location=Coulsdon }}
* {{cite book | title = North Korea Country Study | publisher = [[Library of Congress]] | year = 2009 | url = http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf/CS_North-Korea.pdf | access-date = 8 September 2012 | archive-date = 2 December 2010 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101202052752/http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/pdf/CS_North-Korea.pdf | url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Saunders  |editor-first=Stephen |title=[[Jane's Fighting Ships]] Vol. 110, 2007–2008 |publisher=Jane's Information Group |location=Coulsdon }}
* {{US Army|last1=Scobell|first1=Andrew|last2=Sanford|first2=John M|article=North Korea's Military Threat: Pyongyang's Conventional Forces, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and Ballistic Missiles|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216085335/http://www.strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pdffiles/pub771.pdf|accessdate=8 September 2014|date=April 2007|location=Carlisle|publisher=Strategic Studies Institute|isbn=1-58487-286-1}}
* {{cite book| title=The Military Balance 2019| author1=International Institute for Strategic Studies| author-link1=International Institute for Strategic Studies| date=15 February 2019| publisher=[[Routledge]]| location=London| isbn=9781857439885| ref=IISS2019}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |title=North Korean special forces |last=Bermudez |first=Joseph S. |year=1998 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis| isbn=978-1-55750-066-3 }}
* {{cite book |last=Boik |first=William A. |year=2008 |title=Orders, Decorations, and Medals of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea |publisher=DBMPress.com |location=Springfield, VA |isbn=978-0-615-19087-7}}
* {{cite book|last1=Mitzer|first1=Stijn|last2=Oliemans|first2=Joost|title=North Korea's Armed Forces: On the Path of Songun|year=2015|publisher=Helion|location=Solihull|isbn=978-1-910777-14-5}}
* {{cite book |last=Tertitskiy|first=Fyodor|author-link=Fyodor Tertitskiy|year=2022|title=The North Korean Army: History, Structure, Daily Life|publisher=Routledge|location=Abingdon-on-Thames |isbn=978-1-032147-15-4}}
*{{cite journal|title=Evolution of the Institution of Political Officers in the North Korean Army: Coup-proofing vs Military Effectiveness|journal=[[North Korean Review]]|last1=Tertitskiy|first1=Fyodor|author-link=Fyodor Tertitskiy|year=2022|volume=18|issue=1|pages=7–27|issn=1551-2789|publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc.}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Military of North Korea}}
* [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/korea-north/ North Korea – CIA World Factbook] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150812052526/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/kn.html |date=12 August 2015 }}
* [http://www.kpajournal.com/ ''KPA Journal''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180225011625/http://www.kpajournal.com/ |date=25 February 2018 }}

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