At the beginning of the new year, 2024 is a special tense in the air - on January 5, the South Korean side announced that the North Korean army fired about 200 artillery shells at the South Korean side, but did not land in the substantial territory or surrounding residential areas. Still, public attention has shifted to another question: Will the firing of munitions lead to increased financial pressures as North Korea appears to be in a difficult position this year, with a recession already on the horizonIn addition, we can't help but be concerned about the actual state of North Korea's military strength and whether it will still need to rely on China for assistance in a possible future conflict
In recent years, North Korea has often been referred to as a "mysterious military power" in South Korea, and its standing army is second only to the United States, Russia and China, which is remarkable. Statistics for 2023 show that North Korea has a staggering 1.28 million standing soldiers, with one soldier for every 20 citizens, and the militia ratio is evident. However, North Korea's population of 25 million is still relatively inadequate compared to the 2.03 million Chinese military personnel on active duty released by Society Today. Among them, infantry units account for 80 percent, air forces account for 10 percent, and the navy is relatively weak, accounting for only 5 percent of the total strength, which is comparable to the number of strategic rocket forces. 202 journalists visited North Korea, which has been in a state of technological blockade all along, but this situation has prompted it to focus more on missile and nuclear research. North Korea's proud Mars-17 intercontinental missile was successfully test-fired on March 12, 2022, with a range of up to 150,000 km;Four days later, the test flight of the Hwasong-17 was equally successful.
It is worth noting that scientists at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute said on July 12, 2023, that they had completed the test of the Hwasong-18, which has an unsupported launch function, and although the range is not as good as that of its predecessor, the missile's maneuverability has been significantly improved.
In fact, despite North Korea's relatively low nuclear status, the existence of its nuclear bomb is undoubtedly worrying compared to the more than 200 countries that still do not possess nuclear weapons"Mass killer"。The 5% armed forces held by its strategic rocket forces alone are enough to have a major impact on the world pattern, so what is the real strength of the DPRK's navy, army, and air force?
From a material point of view, North Korea's strategic reserves are indeed huge, with 4,700 tanks and 950 fighter jets. However, some people have questioned the uneven quality of the equipment, some of which are quite old, and even have remnants of the former Soviet Union. Taking the DPRK Air Force as an example, other major countries such as China and the West have begun to develop sixth-generation fighters, but the DPRK Air Force still relies on first- to second-generation fighters, including the domestically produced J-6 and J-7, as well as the MiG-21 produced by the former Soviet Union, which have a total of more than 430 aircraft, accounting for about half of the Air Force; The relatively advanced MiG-29 has only about 35 aircraft. Due to the obsolescence of the aircraft and the difficulty of maintenance, the combat effectiveness of these aircraft is quite worrying. Judging from this time, the strength of North Korean fighters is indeed worth pondering.
Compared with the Air Force, the North Korean Navy is even less powerful. According to statistics, the DPRK has 460,000 active soldiers and more than 800 ships of various types. On the surface, it seems that a confrontation is still possible, but in reality, North Korea's three large ships are all unable to function properly due to radio failures, and have to wait for a solution. Among the remaining small and medium-sized ships, only 6 "Shariyuan" class and T-class frigates and 38 missile boats with a displacement of less than 38 are equipped with SS-N2 "Styx" anti-ship missiles with a certain degree of aggressiveness. In addition, although this anti-ship missile once led the trend, it is more than 50 years old, and it is facing increasingly severe challenges from electronic warfare and anti-missile systems in modern warfare, and its unique performance left over from the 20 th century may no longer be able to meet the needs of today's battlefield.
As for why South Korea is always wary of North Korea, the main reason is that it has more than 20,000 artillery pieces. These include more than 4,000 large-caliber howitzers and cannons, and more than 3,000 general-purpose artillery pieces, most of which are deployed near the 38th parallel, posing a close threat to the South Korean capital, Seoul. In the event of a conflict, North Korea, with its powerful artillery cluster, could reduce Seoul to ruins in just a few hours.
In general, the DPRK has a strong army, especially with a large artillery reserve, which inherits the traditions of the former Soviet Union. For example, North Korea's 170 mm Gusan cannon was borrowed from the Soviet Union's 180 mm anti-shore cannon, and the T55 tank chassis was added to upgrade it to a new self-propelled gun.
In the North Korean artillery forces, the Type 09 300 mm rocket launcher has a powerful long-range combat power. Its range of destruction can reach more than 90 km, which fully meets the military needs of the Korean Peninsula. It is worth mentioning that at the 2022 military parade of the Korean People's Army, North Korean officials displayed 6-barreled 600 mm caliber rocket artillery and claimed that only four shells could destroy an airfield. The excellent performance of North Korean artillery is commendable, but there are also obvious shortcomings, such as emphasizing the Soviet Union's "Hercules brick" design idea and ignoring the development of electronic equipment.
In contrast, South Korea's artillery system is more American, and its development trend is biased towards unmanned and electronic. Taking the K-9 self-propelled gun, which has attracted much attention in the international market in recent years, as an example, its maximum firing range can reach 54 km, and it is equipped with advanced systems such as communication positioning, intelligent heating and fire extinguishing protection, and has a driving speed of up to 53 km h and a cruising range of an astonishing 630 km. Despite this, the application of the K-9 in the Korean Peninsula region still faces many challenges.
First, North Korea has set up numerous anti-tank facilities within the 38th parallel, making it difficult for the 45-ton K-9 to find a good opportunity in such terrain. Secondly, questions about whether the K-9 has potential design flaws have also plagued the international market. Since the vast majority of tanks and SPGs are fighting in open cabins, the turret is locked to ensure the safety of the soldiers. Regrettably, the South Korean side overlooked this important detail during the development process, resulting in incidents in 2011 and 2015 in which one person was injured or killed when entering the locked cockpit of the K-9. In order to avoid the recurrence of similar accidents, South Korea's "Samsung Giga" company successfully resolved this risk after two years of hard research and development. As far as the strength of the air force and navy is concerned, the United States is behind the help of the United States. Relative to North Korea, this may be one of the challenges he faces now.
When it comes to this issue, the "Sino-DPRK Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance" has undoubtedly become the focal point. Under this framework, China will firmly support its allies, especially given that North Korea's geosecurity is also important to China. However, we must understand that the destructive power of war is far greater than in the past, and that a good peace should be the common aspiration of all mankind.