North Korean state media say the massive recruitment is in response to military exercises between the US and South Korea.
North Korea claims about 800,000 young people have volunteered for military service to fight against the United States and other enemies, state newspaper Rodong Sinmum reports.
The volunteers — who pledged to “completely eradicate” North Korea’s enemies and unite the two Koreas — applied for enlistment or re-enlistment in the military at state-hosted events on Friday, Rodong Sinmum said in a report with pictures of people waiting in long lines to sign their names at construction sites and other outdoor locations.
“Approximately 800,000” students and workers – described as the “youth vanguard” of the country – had marched “at once to take part in the war to defend the fatherland and the war to destroy the enemy,” Rondong Sinmum reported on Saturday. according to NK News – which follows events in North Korea.
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According to the NK News report, the young volunteers are said to be responding to provocative actions by the US and South Korea, referred to in the newspaper report as “US imperialists and puppet traitors”, who are determined to defend North Korea’s “independence and right to life. destroy. and develop”.
The youth volunteers were determined to “mercilessly exterminate the war fanatics who are making a last ditch effort to erase our socialist homeland,” Rondong Sinmum said, according to NK News.
“While the ages of those who reportedly enlisted have not been announced, all men in North Korea are required to serve in the military for at least 10 years and women for at least three years due to the country’s conscription system,” NK News reported.
Friday’s massive recruitment came a day after North Korea launched a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which Pyongyang said traveled some 1,000 km (620 mi) “before landing accurately” on a predetermined set location in the Baltic Sea. of Korea, also called the Sea of Japan.
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North Korea said it launched the Hwasong-17 in response to “provocative and aggressive” military exercises between the US and South Korea. Pyongyang sees the joint exercises as Washington and Seoul’s rehearsal for an invasion of the north.
South Korean and US forces began 11 days of joint military exercises dubbed “Freedom Shield 23” on Monday.
NEW: Full story here on “800,000” young North Koreans who reportedly signed up to “participate in the war to defend the homeland and the war to destroy the enemy”, Americans and South Koreans.
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— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) March 17, 2023
The launch of the Hwasong ICBM on Thursday came just hours before South Korea’s president flew to Tokyo for a summit with the country’s prime minister, who had focused on ways for Seoul and Japan to work together in countering the the military threat posed by North Korea.
The Tokyo summit between South Korea’s Yoon Suk-yeol and Japan’s Fumio Kishida marked the first visit to Japan by a South Korean president in 12 years. The visit comes amid an unprecedented number of ballistic missile launches and other weapons tests by North Korea in recent months.
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