North Korea Is Preparing For War?

[BFritz21]

North Korea says it has had 800,000 citizens join the army to fight against us.

Quote:SEOUL (Reuters) — North Korea claims that about 800,000 of its citizens volunteered to join or reenlist in the nation's military to fight against the United States, North Korea's state newspaper reported on Saturday.

About 800,000 students and workers, on Friday alone, across the country expressed a desire to enlist or reenlist in the military to counter the United States, the Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported.

"The soaring enthusiasm of young people to join the army is a demonstration of the unshakeable will of the younger generation to mercilessly wipe out the war maniacs making last-ditch efforts to eliminate our precious socialist country, and achieve the great cause of national reunification without fail and a clear manifestation of their ardent patriotism," the North's Rodong Sinmun said.

My first thought was "what are these people signing up for?"

I get it that they're joining the military, but do they think we're going to invade them or they're going to invade us?

That's why it makes no sense to me because, if we would happen to go to war, it would be an air war and they used to have a strong navy but I heard most of their boats and submarines are old?

Even if they do still have a strong navy and try to fight us with that and their outdated air force full of old planes.

Are they just making up that big number to make it sound like they're ready to fight us because they know our planes, ships, and submarines would wipe their off the face of the earth?

[BFritz21]

Here's the rest of the article:

Quote:Reuters
Fri, March 17, 2023, 5:58 PM EDT·2 min read
Troops take part in a military parade to mark the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea's army, in Pyongyang, North Korea on Feb. 8, 2023, in this photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via REUTERS)
Troops take part in a military parade to mark the 75th founding anniversary of North Korea's army, in Pyongyang, North Korea on Feb. 8, 2023, in this photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via REUTERS)
SEOUL (Reuters) — North Korea claims that about 800,000 of its citizens volunteered to join or reenlist in the nation's military to fight against the United States, North Korea's state newspaper reported on Saturday.

About 800,000 students and workers, on Friday alone, across the country expressed a desire to enlist or reenlist in the military to counter the United States, the Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported.

"The soaring enthusiasm of young people to join the army is a demonstration of the unshakeable will of the younger generation to mercilessly wipe out the war maniacs making last-ditch efforts to eliminate our precious socialist country, and achieve the great cause of national reunification without fail and a clear manifestation of their ardent patriotism," the North's Rodong Sinmun said.

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The North's claim came after North Korea on Thursday launched its Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in response to ongoing U.S-South Korea military drills.

North Korea fired the ICBM into the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan on Thursday, hours before South Korea's president flew to Tokyo for a summit that discussed ways to counter the nuclear-armed North.

The North's ballistic missiles are banned under United Nations Security Council resolutions and the launch drew condemnation from governments in Seoul, Washington and Tokyo.

South Korean and American forces began 11 days of joint drills, dubbed "Freedom Shield 23," on Monday, held on a scale not seen since 2017 to counter the North's growing threats.

Kim accused the United States and South Korea of increasing tensions with the military drills.

[Belsnickel]

(03-18-2023, 07:14 PM)BFritz21 Wrote: North Korea says it has had 800,000 citizens join the army to fight against us.


My first thought was "what are these people signing up for?"

I get it that they're joining the military, but do they think we're going to invade them or they're going to invade us?

That's why it makes no sense to me because, if we would happen to go to war, it would be an air war and they used to have a strong navy but I heard most of their boats and submarines are old?

Even if they do still have a strong navy and try to fight us with that and their outdated air force full of old planes.

Are they just making up that big number to make it sound like they're ready to fight us because they know our planes, ships, and submarines would wipe their off the face of the earth?

So, it's hard to say what kind of bloviating is going on. If they did increase their military by that amount, it absolutely was not voluntary. It was conscription. That being said, in the DPRK joining the military is about the only way to guarantee meat in your diet. It is a crime to eat beef if you are not a part of the armed forces or the ruling party. Things I have learned from defectors that I used to live next door to and have seen corroborated by other defectors in media.

But yeah, it's all just saber rattling. Whenever there are military exercises with South Korea or there is some big event in the DPRK, they love to do this sort of stuff.

[Dill]

(03-18-2023, 07:14 PM)BFritz21 Wrote: North Korea says it has had 800,000 citizens join the army to fight against us.

My first thought was "what are these people signing up for?"

I get it that they're joining the military, but do they think we're going to invade them or they're going to invade us?

That's why it makes no sense to me because, if we would happen to go to war, it would be an air war and they used to have a strong navy but I heard most of their boats and submarines are old?

Even if they do still have a strong navy and try to fight us with that and their outdated air force full of old planes.

Are they just making up that big number to make it sound like they're ready to fight us because they know our planes, ships, and submarines would wipe their off the face of the earth?

Bels pretty much got it right, I think.

That announcement doesn't really mean that 800,000 North Koreans have actually enlisted and are eager to "defend" against the U.S. etc.
(I doubt the already too large NK military could effectively absorb and support that many new volunteers, nor could NK's
agriculture and manufacturing support the loss of labor.)

The real audience of the announcement is probably the North Korean populace itself, not us. It is a possible cue as to what people are supposed
to say and how they are to behave in public. It accompanies a missile launch and a 75 year anniversary, whipping up the morale and 
enthusiasm needed to keep people focused on an external enemy, framing that as the cause of their daily misery and not their subjection to the most totalitarian state in existence. 

Hard to say what a war with NK would look like. Might depend on how it started. 

But I doubt it would be just the U.S. and N.K. S.K. would also be involved, and it is against them that the NK Army
would be a serious threat. 

"Wiping them off the face of the earth" would bring great risk of damage/war expanding to China and Russia.

Another danger is that if they invade the South, we can't just rake an ally with missiles. U.S. ground forces would likely
have to be committed to protect the South. 

[SunsetBengal]

(03-19-2023, 03:44 PM)Dill Wrote: Bels pretty much got it right, I think.

That announcement doesn't really mean that 800,000 North Koreans have actually enlisted and are eager to "defend" against the U.S. etc.
(I doubt the already too large NK military could effectively absorb and support that many new volunteers, nor could NK's
agriculture and manufacturing support the loss of labor.)

The real audience of the announcement is probably the North Korean populace itself, not us. It is a possible cue as to what people are supposed
to say and how they are to behave in public. It accompanies a missile launch and a 75 year anniversary, whipping up the morale and 
enthusiasm needed to keep people focused on an external enemy, framing that as the cause of their daily misery and not their subjection to the most totalitarian state in existence. 

Hard to say what a war with NK would look like. Might depend on how it started. 

But I doubt it would be just the U.S. and N.K. S.K. would also be involved, and it is against them that the NK Army
would be a serious threat. 

"Wiping them off the face of the earth" would bring great risk of damage/war expanding to China and Russia.

Another danger is that if they invade the South, we can't just rake an ally with missiles. U.S. ground forces would likely
have to be committed to protect the South. 

I don't always agree with your point of view, but I believe that 100%.

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(03-18-2023, 08:59 PM)Belsnickel Wrote: That being said, in the DPRK joining the military is about the only way to guarantee meat in your diet.

The only way to guarantee food in your diet.

Songun at work.