Military power of North Korea & China and North Korea
North Korea vs China and North Korea
Show map
North Korea is a country located in Eastern Asia with an area of 120,540 km2 (land boundries: 1,607 km and costline 2,495 km). The capital of North Korea is Pyongyang. The number of inhabitants is 25,549,604.
The KPA is equipped with older weapon systems originally acquired from the former Soviet Union, Russia, and China, as well as some domestically-produced equipment. The North Korea produces a diverse array of military hardware like light armored vehicles, tanks, naval vessels and submarines, and advanced weapons systems, such as ballistic missiles. North Korea developing also nuclear weapons.
More about North Korea militaryThe China-DPRK Treaty on Friendship is a treaty signed on 11 July 1961 between North Korea and China. The treaty obligates China militarily to defend North Korea and vice versa.North Korea enjoys a close relationship with China which is often called North Korea's closest ally. The relations were strained in the last few years because of China's concerns about North Korea's nuclear program. Both countries have nuclear weapons.
If you want to check the comparison in terms of economic ratios check out CompareEconomy.com
Military expenditures
 KP |  CNK | |
|---|---|---|
| Military budget: | 1.6 billion $ | 294.6 billion $ |
| Percent of GDP: | 4.9% | 0% |
Manpower
| KP | CNK | |
|---|---|---|
| Active personnel: | 1,280,000 | 3,315,000 |
| Reserve personnel: | 600,000 | 2,600,000 |
| Available for military: | 6,515,279 | 392,336,380 |
Land Forces
| KP | CNK | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tanks: | 6,000 | 11,750 | |
| Armoured fighting vehicles: | 4,000 | 18,130 | |
| Total artillery: | 13,000 | 20,094 | |
| Self-propelled artillery: | 4,500 | 7,220 | |
| Rocket artillery: | 4,000 | 7,140 |
Air Forces
| KP | CNK | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Total aircraft: | 960 | 5,590 | |
| Fighter aircraft: | 349 | 1,398 | |
| Multirole aircraft: | 35 | 1,165 | |
| Attack aircraft: | 188 | 308 | |
| Helicopters: | 202 | 1,557 | |
| UCAV (combat drone): | 0 | 151 |
Navy
| KP | CNK | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Total naval: | 967 | 1,709 | |
| Aircraftcarriers: | 0 | 4 | |
| Destroyers: | 0 | 38 | |
| Frigates: | 2 | 56 | |
| Corvettes: | 8 | 81 | |
| Submarines: | 72 | 146 |
☢ Nuclear weapons
North Korea
Although at the beginning North Korea joined the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, they withdrew from it on January 2003. It was a consequence of the United States accusation. The USA government claimed that North Korea was unofficially funding a program of uranium enrichment. Because of that, they cancelled the 1994 Agreed Framework treaty and cut off the energy assistance. Two years after withdrawing, the officials from North Korea claimed that they own operational nuclear arsenal. In spite of North Koreans assurances, the United States did not believe that North Korea really posses such weapons. As a result, the government of North Korea decided to conduct tests.
There were three tests that North Korea initially conducted. The first one, with the yield of less than a kiloton, took place in 2006. However, to show that this was in fact a nuclear detonation, North Koreans conducted second and third tests, respectable in 2009 and 2013. The maximum power of the blast of the aforementioned tests can be estimated to be up to 40 kilotons. However, a lot of sources claim that yield did not surpass 10-15 kilotons. Noteworthy is also the fact that in 2016, North Korea announced that they have conducted their first hydrogen-bomb test.
China and North Korea
Data not available
Military service
North Korea
18 is presumed to be the legal minimum age for compulsory military service; 16-17 is the presumed legal minimum age for voluntary service.
China and North Korea
Data not available