North Korea has moved scores of tanks and armored vehicles to an Army corps near the border with China in Ryanggang Province. The 12th Corps, which was established in 2010, is tasked with responding to movements of Chinese troops in an emergency.
A source on Monday said about 80 tanks have been deployed in Ryanggang Province, where there had not been a single one before. The corps has been "turned into an attack force after it has been reinforced" with an armored infantry unit, a unit of multiple rocket launchers, and a special warfare and sharpshooter brigade.
Some 80 new armored vehicles are expected to be deployed soon to the 42nd Brigade in the province. Leader Kim Jong-un has reportedly ordered the rapid deployment of these new vehicles, which have a top speed of 80km/h carrying 10 to 15 troops. More than 10 new tanks with an automatic fire-control system and a computer monitor have also been deployed to this unit.
The source attributed the moves to fears that sole ally China could "betray" the North amid increasing pressure on Pyongyang to give up its nuclear program.
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