North Korea’s “military-first” policy, in which the armed forces receive priority in funding, means that arms there outnumber those in the South Korea by about 2 to 1, including tanks, long-range artillery, aircraft, and armored personnel carriers, according to US estimates. Still, much of the military equipment in North Korea is out dated. Though exact numbers are hard to come by, North Korea is estimated to have some 1.2 million troops, making it the fourth largest active military in the world according to some estimates. South Korea’s military, in comparison, has about 680,000 troops.
The North’s Military spending is estimated at as much as a quarter of the country's GNP.
KCNA/Reuters
