North Korea’s Kim stresses lessons of ‘modern warfare’ during second visit to military training center

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits the Kang Kon Military Academy, the most prestigious officer training center, in Pyongyang on Feb. 25. [YONHAP]

 
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a junior officer training institution in Pyongyang on Tuesday, emphasizing the need to educate soldiers on “the actual experiences of modern warfare,” state media reported Wednesday. 
 
His visit marked the second consecutive day inspecting military training institutions, following his tour of Kim Il Sung University of Politics on Monday, in what experts see as an effort to solidify military discipline early in the year.  
 
During his visit to the Kang Kon Military Academy, Kim highlighted the current international security environment in which war has become a daily reality, according to an English-language report by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
 
Kim went on to lay out essential tasks, including “preparing all students to be reliable military personnel of field-officer type who win only sure victory by making them learn about the actual experiences of modern warfare in the Korean style and master the rapidly advanced weapons and combat and technical equipment and acquire the commanding ability corresponding to modern warfare,” the KCNA reported.
 

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, meets with a cadet practicing on the parallel bars during his visit to the Kang Kon Military Academy, the country’s most prestigious commanding officers training center, in Pyongyang on Feb. 25, in this photo released by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency the next day. [YONHAP]

Kim also stressed that military education should “surely instill in the students the resolute revolutionary consciousness to make revolution before transferring military knowledge to them” and “prepare them to be fighters of combat type possessed of crack-shot marksmanship, skillful combat methods and strong physical ability.”
 
Kim’s repeated mention of “actual experiences of modern warfare” suggests he wants the army to apply lessons learned from the three-year war against Ukraine.
 
“Kim’s continued military-related inspections reflect an effort to maintain military cohesion, as the armed forces serve as the final stronghold for executing his policies — not only in defense but also in economic projects,” said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul. “Given developments such as the inauguration of the Trump administration and discussions on ending the war in Ukraine, North Korea is likely taking a calculated approach, strengthening internal stability with a dual focus on national defense and regional development.” 
 
Located on the outskirts of Pyongyang, the Kang Kon Military Academy is named after Kang Kon, the first Chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, who was killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. Upon graduation, students are commissioned as second lieutenants and typically assigned as junior infantry commanders.
 
South Korea’s Unification Ministry on Wednesday predicted that North Korea may increase military activities this year as part of its “Year of Training” campaign.  
 
“During his visit to the Defense Ministry on Feb. 8, Kim Jong-un declared this year as the Year of Training and ordered thorough war preparations aligned with modern warfare requirements,” said South Korean Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho in a briefing to the National Assembly’s Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee. 
 
He also noted that Pyongyang has focused its resources on domestic economic projects, including its 20×10 Regional Development Policy and Pyongyang housing initiative, thanks to improved policy execution following closer ties with Russia.
 
However, the minister pointed out that North Korea’s key macroeconomic indicators, including trade levels with China, have yet to recover to pre-sanctions levels, and North Korean citizens still face economic hardships.
 
Following a Workers’ Party delegation visit to Moscow at the invitation of the United Russia party, the two sides signed an agreement to expand and deepen interparty cooperation on Tuesday, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.
 
Vladimir Yakushev, secretary of the General Council of United Russia, recalled that the two parties signed an earlier agreement on exchange and cooperation seven years ago, adding, “Much of the world has changed since then, but the Russian and Korean people have become even closer.”
 
Yakushev also said that Russia “highly appreciates” North Korea’s support for Moscow’s foreign policy, though he did not mention North Korean troops reportedly deployed to Russia to support its war with Ukraine.

BY SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]