Was it brave or vulnerable, and what was the actual combat strength of the North Korean army during the Korean War?

On September 30, 1950, Premier Zhou addressed the world and warned the United States of its war on the Korean Peninsula, saying:

"The Chinese people will never tolerate foreign aggression, nor can they allow the imperialists to wantonly invade their neighbors and turn a blind eye."

【Premier Zhou】

However, the Americans believed that China had only just been established and would not easily send troops, so they ignored Premier Zhou's warning.

So on October 19, Mr. Peng crossed the Yalu River with the Chinese People's Volunteers and began a battle with the US imperialists.

The final result is known to everyone, the Chinese People's Volunteers won the largest battle after World War II, so that the world no longer dares to underestimate the Chinese.

So, what is the actual combat effectiveness of the Korean People's Army, which is so brave and fighting for its own country? Are they brave or vulnerable?

【Chinese People's Volunteer Army】

Korean People's Army in the early stages of the war

On 15 August 1948, South Korea proclaimed the establishment of the Republic of Korea, and less than a month later, North Korea proclaimed the Democratic People's Republic of Korea on 9 September.

The Korean Peninsula, which was originally one, became two countries due to the legacy of World War II, but neither of these two countries was convinced of the other, and both considered themselves orthodox and had the idea of reunifying the peninsula.

Therefore, even though the United States and the Soviet Union have helped them demarcate the boundary at the 38th parallel (i.e., the 38th parallel), there is still a lot of friction between the two countries on the border.

【38-line division】

Finally, war broke out between the two countries on June 25, 1950.

In the early stage, the combat effectiveness of the Korean People's Army was still very good, and at this time the Soviet Union had completely withdrawn from the DPRK, and the DPRK completely relied on itself to confront the ROK.

However, because of the great influence of the Soviet Union, China and Japan, three Korean divisions returned to Korea from China, and the previous Japanese colonization also had a certain impact on the Korean People's Army, but the most influential was the Soviet Union.

【Korean People's Army】

The Korean People's Army was single-handedly cultivated by the Soviet Union, and when they built the army, the Soviet Union waved its hand and provided equipment for six infantry divisions, three mechanized divisions, more than 150 military aircraft, and also packed several hundred military advisers to the DPRK to help the DPRK build its army.

Therefore, the Korean starving military system, composition, etc. is almost another version of the Soviet army.

With the support of the Soviet Union, North Korea naturally had the confidence to fight South Korea, so in the early stage of the Korean War, the North Korean army obviously had the upper hand and took Seoul in three days.

And the South Korean army was defeated from the beginning and had no power to resist.

【South Korean Army】

Soon the United States jumped out, the reason is very simple, from the DPRK's military configuration, it can be seen that the DPRK belongs to the sphere of influence of the Soviet Union, if the DPRK is allowed to unify the peninsula, then what chance will the United States have in the future to mix in Asia?

As a result, the United States immediately pulled more than a dozen "backed" countries to form a "United Nations Army" and began to help South Korea counterattack, but what is unexpected is that even with the help of the US military, the South Korean army still could not defeat North Korea, and later 90 percent of the peninsula belonged to North Korea.

[Korean War Situation Map]

But just when the North Korean army was about to win victory and unify the Korean Peninsula, MacArthur's move made North Korea lose its advantage.

Korean People's Army in the middle of the war

At MacArthur's suggestion, the U.S. forces landed at Inchon after a roundabout journey and began to attack the Korean People's Army from behind, cutting off the waist line of the Korean Peninsula.

At this time, the inferiority of the Korean People's Army was exposed.

First of all, the port of Incheon is actually very unfavorable for the landing of US troops, which is why the US military did not support McArthur's landing from Inchon at the beginning, as long as the Korean People's Army is more prepared for Incheon, the US military will definitely not find a chance.

[U.S. troops preparing for the Inchon landing]

However, the Korean People's Army was immersed in the joy of imminent reunification and did not think at all about what the more than 300 warships of the United States and Britain were doing in the waters off Incheon, which also showed that the Korean People's Army did not have a strong strategic vision.

Later, the U.S. military found some weapons and ammunition left over from World War II in Pupyeong, but the Korean People's Army did not care about these equipment because it admired Soviet equipment and disdained American equipment.

The U.S. forces then occupied Gimpo Airport as an extremely important strategic transit point, and easily established a stronghold in the rear of the North Koreans, which led to the gradual inability of the North Koreans in the subsequent battles and finally retreated north of the 38th parallel.

【U.S. Airlift during the Korean War】

However, the U.S. military does not want to continue to maintain the division of the 38th parallel, and they want to directly eliminate the communist forces in North Korea, so as not to hinder their hegemony in the future and the flames of war will burn into China's sphere of influence.

In order not to interfere with China, the US military also sent warships to harass China's Taiwan Strait area, and later directly attacked Chinese fishing boats.

[U.S. Seventh Fleet blockade of the Taiwan Strait]

For the sake of the country's security and future development, the mainland decided to send troops to support the DPRK in resisting the United States.

Korean People's Army in the late war

At this stage, the Korean People's Army was inevitably demoralized a little because of the medium-term defeat, but fortunately, the Chinese People's Volunteers also entered the Korean battlefield and stood on the side of the DPRK without hesitation.

The most famous are the "Bloodstained Ridge Battle" and the "Sad Heart Ridge Campaign" that the US military has remembered for decades.

【Bloodstained Ridge after the War】

Bloodstained Ridge is the 983.1 height, which is only 4 square kilometers of position, but the Korean People's Army did not give an inch in the case of a huge difference in firepower, and the US army continued to attack, consumed a huge amount of artillery shells, and killed nearly 3,000 people.

Sad Heart Ridge is between the 851, 931, and 894 highland groups, and the US military at that time thought that the Korean People's Army must have suffered a great loss of vitality after the battle of Bloodstained Ridge, so they wanted to take Sad Heart Ridge quickly, but the attacking US troops were repelled by the KPA again and again, and suffered heavy casualties.

【U.S. troops on the march】

summary

In general, the Korean People's Army itself is not a weak army, but it is only limited by the development of the country's economy and the strength of its opponents (the U.S. military) that it is gradually unable to withstand it.

Resources:

[1] In-depth analysis: Is North Korea strong or weak?

[2] Looking at the strategic significance of the Korean War from a historical perspective, we won!