PLA 39th Army Group maneuvering close to North Korean Border

luhai said:

Winter training took place on 1/11/14 to 1/18/14, looks to be fairly routine.

Here is video of the training in 2014

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in 2013...

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in 2012...

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in 2011...

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well, you get the point. In any case, training in -30C weather doesn't look fun, especially for the foot soldiers...

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Nice pics, and thanks for the explanation.

Were the training exercises in 2011, 2012, and 2013 of the same size and magnitude as those this year?

If they were, then I agree...it is an issue being made of nothing.

However if these exercises were significantly larger, then one might make the point that a message was being sent.

Jeff Head said:

Nice pics, and thanks for the explanation.

Were the training exercises in 2011, 2012, and 2013 of the same size and magnitude as those this year?

If they were, then I agree...it is an issue being made of nothing.

However if these exercises were significantly larger, then one might make the point that a message was being sent.

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Unfortunately, PLA isn't as transparent back then as they are now. so we can't make a straight comparison. Units are referred in code, and news reports focus on single units rather enter the whole thing. (for example Shenyang MR is conducting military training, our reporter interview with a company that put up a bridge etc. Now news reports can talk about how many troop is involved and which Army participated). From the new reports's style, and the attention state media (not foreign media or chinese media quoting foreign media) give to this event, it doesn't seems to be so different from past years, just gives more information.

It's really unreal that in this day and age, this kind of purge would occur. This is something that happens in Imperial China, not in the 21st century!

I think the fact that Kim felt the need to go to these lengths show that there is significant factional support for Jang. I doubt that killing Jang's blood relatives will quiet the dissent. I think we're about to see some political upheavals in NK...

Furthermore, this incident proves that Kim has no intention whatsoever of modernizing North Korea. Can you imagine a modernized nation tolerating that kind of blood purge?

I recently read some articles from a Chinese source about Chinese businesses planning to invest in North Korea. Their line of thinking was that they had the opportunity to make as much money from NK reforms as others did from Chinese reforms.

I think Kim's actions have proved that that line of thinking is just a pipe dream. As long as the Kim dynasty rules, there will not be any kind of reforms in North Korea.

Its the roman empire.
new emperors often killed off there family, friends, and anyone else who might have either had evidence against them, former key players or a possible line in to power. It gave them in essence a clean slate.
these executions were public and brutal to be a example. In Rome it was decapitation, in NK its anti aircraft cannons.

luhai said:

In any case, training in -30C weather doesn't look fun, especially for the foot soldiers...

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You're right it's never fun. I remember I did an FTX in Ft. Hood, TX during the month of December and it was 30 degrees Fahrenheit outside and I slept inside a bivouac (tent) with my fellow soldier at night. Everything felt cold, I have to keep moving around during instructions done outside to prevent myself from falling asleep. But the stars was beautiful at night.

Equation said:

You're right it's never fun. I remember I did an FTX in Ft. Hood, TX during the month of December and it was 30 degrees Fahrenheit outside and I slept inside a bivouac (tent) with my fellow soldier at night. Everything felt cold, I have to keep moving around during instructions done outside to prevent myself from falling asleep. But the stars was beautiful at night.

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Hehehe...

Deep in the Heart of Texas said:

Oh the stars shine bright
Each and every night,
Deep in the Heart of Texas!

Reminds me of
The one I love,
Deep in in the Heart of Texas!

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I used to take here in Idaho to teach them to build snow shelter/caves to sleep in in very cold and sub zero weather (like -15 to -20 F).

solarz said:

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It's really unreal that in this day and age, this kind of purge would occur. This is something that happens in Imperial China, not in the 21st century!

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Not just in imperial china. This happened time and again in the 20th century as well. Other largely indiginous communist movements that attain unchallenged supreme authority through violent overthrown of old regimes, the lethal culling of eminent old comrades who were in the forefront of putting the regime in power was more the rule than the exception.

Stalin, for example, had by 1939 killed literally every last one of the eminent old Bolsheviks who faught with Lenin to establish the soviet regime. First Stalin went after those who supported his rivals during the succession struggle after lenin's death in the early 1930s. Then Stalin found ways to murder those who had demonstrate outstanding ability such as Kirov and Tukechevsky, that their accomplishments could threaten to increase their influence to the point where they would rival him. Finally he killed the rest who were just busy avoiding getting in his way, like Bukarin, just for good measure.

Mao was not quite as thorough as Stalin and didn't manage to kill many of his former comrades before they, or him, had the opportunity to die natural deaths. But he killed, or caused to die, several notable ones as well. The fatality rate of mao's top comrades was still quite respectable at 30%+.

The main difference between North Korea and other communist regimes is:

1). other regimes generally mellowed and liberalized after about 30-35 years, when they reached their third generation of leadership. North Korea is on the third generation and well into its 6th decade and still murderous as ever.

2). Other communist dictatorships never quite stooped to becoming a heriditary monarchy.

luhai said:

Well, all this talk... there is actual the winter training which took place on 1/11/14 to 1/18/14, looks to be fairly routine.

Here is video of the training in 2014

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Why it is routine, here is article about the same sort of training, around early January near NK boarder in 2013

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and 2012...

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2011...

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well, you get the point. The unit's training area is near the NK boarder and they train in early January, cause it dead winter. Hence the name Winter Training. People are making a big deal out of it this year, cause of the situation in NK. But really, it just much to do about nothing, they go there practically every year. The training is over now. the units has gone back to base...

In any case, training in -30C weather doesn't look fun, especially for the foot soldiers...

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This has to be physical fitness or wilderness acclimation training. It can't be combat training.

chuck731 said:

Not just in imperial china. This happened time and again in the 20th century as well. Other largely indiginous communist movements that attain unchallenged supreme authority through violent overthrown of old regimes, the lethal culling of eminent old comrades who were in the forefront of putting the regime in power was more the rule than the exception.

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Killing your political rivals is one thing. Killing every single blood relative of said rival is something else altogether.

Three generations Sol. Its said that when you are ruled by the rulers of NK as to have offended the people of North Korea. You, your sons and daughters and there children are all ostracized.
its a example being made.
you kill the individual to clear your way to power. You kill there family to eliminate any memory of there injustice. You exile there children to hard labor to silence there vengeance. You keep there grandchildren under the lash to make them docile. So the forth generation is allowed to feel indebted to the state and your mercy.