The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has demonstrated to the world that it can successfully build a modern and powerful armed force, even under the most stringent international sanctions.
At the same time, the North Korean leadership continues to strengthen and support the development of its military forces.
Today, the Korean People's Army (KPA) is capable of fully executing a variety of missions, ranging from the outbreak of local wars to effectively deterring potential enemies strategically.
It is noteworthy that these potential enemies also have to acknowledge this fact.
As a reflection of national strength, the KPA exhibits many unique characteristics that not only reflect the strategic goals of the North Korean political leadership but also determine the combat capabilities of this army.
Initially, North Korea modeled its national armed forces after the Soviet Army, but over time, it gradually introduced its own decisions and ideas, eventually forming a multi-layered military structure capable of executing a wide range of combat missions.
According to military experts, the total strength of the KPA is currently estimated to be between 1.25 million and 1.3 million personnel, making it one of the largest armies in the world.
Additionally, most of North Korea's population (over 26 million as of 2023) is in reserve status and can be quickly mobilized if necessary.
About seven years ago, North Korea's strategic missile forces were separated from the ground forces to become an independent branch of the armed forces.
The special operations forces also undertake a range of special missions.
North Korea's military activities are supported by a developed domestic military-industrial complex, which includes numerous enterprises producing weapons, military and special equipment, and ammunition, as well as dozens of design and research institutions.
It is particularly noteworthy that nearly all products of North Korea's defense industry, from small arms to intercontinental missiles, rely almost entirely on domestically sourced components, with external assistance required only in very rare cases.
Of course, the international community's assessment of the KPA's combat effectiveness is controversial, as Western media, for traditional political reasons, often underestimate North Korea's military potential, claiming it is severely affected by "economic weakness, technological backwardness, and the constraints of sanctions."
In the well-known "Global Firepower-2024" ranking, North Korea was ranked 36th, while its main competitors in the Asia-Pacific region were ranked higher: Japan was ranked 5th, and South Korea was ranked 7th.
Even an island region with only 215,000 armed forces was ranked 24th, raising many questions about the rationality of these rankings.
Regarding North Korea's military strength, although its strategic missile forces have a relatively small number of personnel (about 10,000 to 12,000), their importance cannot be overlooked.
Experts point out that North Korea currently has about 100 to 120 intercontinental and medium-range missile systems deployed, including some for special purposes.
The largest component of the KPA is the ground forces, with numbers ranging between 700,000 and 1.1 million, depending on the evaluation criteria of different experts.
The ground forces include approximately 15 to 20 divisions, stationed within North Korea, responsible for defending the capital Pyongyang and the border with South Korea.
According to the "Military Balance" analysis, the KPA has a strong tank force, with a total of about 3,000 tanks.
In addition to Soviet-produced T-54/T-55 tanks, North Korea also manufactures its own modern main battle tanks, such as the "Songun" and "Chonma."
North Korea's armored vehicle fleet includes over 2,000 vehicles of various types, though many are older Soviet-produced armored personnel carriers.
The KPA's artillery and multiple rocket launcher systems are also considerable in number, totaling over 21,000 pieces.
Their equipment includes multiple rocket launch systems, mortars, towed and self-propelled artillery, with calibers ranging from 122mm to 170mm. In recent years, North Korea has also built and deployed various tactical missile systems.
North Korea's air defense system is also built according to the Soviet model, with air defense forces including at least 10,000 self-propelled or towed anti-aircraft guns and heavy machine gun systems.
Additionally, North Korea possesses a large number of Soviet/Russian portable air defense systems.
The KPA's air force consists of four divisions, each responsible for different strategic directions, with approximately 110,000 personnel.
To carry out combat missions, the air force uses one assault regiment, three bomber regiments, and several fighter regiments.
The air force also includes military transport aircraft, army aviation, and training aviation.
The total fleet of the air force is about 550 aircraft, of which about 400 are fighters, including relatively modern Su-25 and MiG-29, as well as older MiG-15 and MiG-17.
Bombers include at least 80 Il-28 aircraft, with most of the air force's equipment being produced by China and the Soviet Union.
The KPA's army aviation is equipped with about 300 transport and transport-combat helicopters, most of which are Soviet-designed.
Recently, information about the formation of a drone fleet has gradually surfaced, but specific models remain classified.
North Korea's air defense forces include 18-20 air defense brigades, equipped with old Soviet S-75 Dvina, S-125 Neva, and S-200 Angara systems.
Additionally, North Korea has developed and deployed its own Pongae series of long-range and medium-range air defense systems.
In terms of the navy, North Korea has about 60,000 personnel, distributed between the West Sea and East Sea fleets, responsible for protecting North Korea's interests in the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan.
The navy fleet includes 500 surface ships and submarines, most of which are Soviet-designed diesel-electric submarines.
In recent years, North Korea has made progress in manufacturing modern submarines equipped with ballistic missiles, with at least one new diesel-electric submarine in service.
North Korea's largest surface ships include 10 frigates equipped with domestically produced missile and artillery weapons.
The navy also has about 300 patrol boats and gunboats, 30 missile boats, 20 minesweepers, and a dozen landing ships capable of transporting heavy armored vehicles.
Finally, the coastal forces include missile and artillery units, as well as a marine corps.
These units are equipped with large-caliber systems and various types of mobile and fixed anti-ship missile systems.
Overall, the North Korean political leadership has established a large and continually developing armed force capable of effectively executing strategic deterrence and, if necessary, engaging potential enemies in combat.
It is noteworthy that the North Korean strategic missile forces have the capability to destroy enemy targets far across the Pacific Ocean.
The combat potential of the KPA is expected to continue developing, especially in the context of the increasingly tense global military-political situation.
Moreover, the recently signed military-technical cooperation agreement between Moscow and Pyongyang will further facilitate this process.
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