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North Korean state media reported on Wednesday that approximately 1.4 million young people applied to join or return to the military this week, attributing the surge to a provocative drone incursion from Seoul that has brought the “tense situation to the brink of war.”
This was reported by Reuters.
This escalation follows North Korea’s accusation last week that Seoul deployed drones over Pyongyang, distributing a “huge number” of anti-North leaflets. In response, North Korea destroyed inter-Korean roads and rail lines on its side of the border on Tuesday and warned that the South would “pay a dear price.”
According to the official KCNA news agency, the young applicants, including students and youth league officials, expressed a strong desire to fight in a “sacred war to destroy the enemy with the arms of the revolution.” KCNA published photographs showing these individuals signing petitions at an undisclosed location.
The report emphasized, “If a war breaks out, the ROK will be wiped off the map. As it desires conflict, we are prepared to end its existence,” using the acronym for South Korea’s official name, the Republic of Korea.
While North Korea has previously claimed that many young people are eager to enlist during heightened tensions, such assertions from the isolated regime are hard to verify. Last year, state media claimed that 800,000 citizens volunteered to join the military to fight against the United States, and in 2017, it reported nearly 3.5 million volunteers from among workers, party members, and soldiers.
According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), North Korea has 1.28 million active soldiers and around 600,000 reservists, along with 5.7 million reservists in the Worker/Peasant Red Guard and other unarmed units.
While Seoul’s defense ministry did not comment on the latest KCNA report, it has warned that any harm inflicted by North Korea on South Koreans would result in “the end of its regime.”
Earlier, state media in North Korea reported that young people are rushing to enlist in the army following accusations that Seoul allegedly sent drones over Pyongyang, which dropped a “huge number” of provocative leaflets.
Subsequently, North Korea blew up inter-Korean roads and railway lines on its side of the border and threatened its neighbors with a “heavy price.”
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