North Korea Hyped Its Main Battle Tank

Kim Jong Un’s recent visit to a live fire training ground on October 13 was publicized the next day with multiple high resolution photos of the Korean People’s Army (KPA) tanks, which are a mixed fleet. The highlight, of course, were the models described as the “new-type main battle tank” that are dissimilar from the KPA’s earlier efforts at locally built tanks. Also labelled as the “M-2020” for convenience (the number refers to the year it was first shown in public during a parade) these belonged to the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su Guards 105th Tank Division or the 105th Tank Division for short.

The activities during Kim’s visit, itself forming a schedule of appearances to advertise the country’s martial strength, aren’t relevant. But it’s worth pointing out how the M-2020, whose appearance elicits bafflement and bewilderment, is a genuine third-generation battle tank patterned after every other third-generation tank model in service. The layout of the hull takes its cue from Russia’s constantly delayed T-14 but the turret slaps together the South Korean-made K1/K1A1/K1E1 and the US-made Abrams although gaps in the armor are used to carry small rockets for the active protection system. Since 2023 a new external feature of the tank are explosive reactive armor (ERA) plates at the front and sides of the turret.

Other external characteristics of the original M-2020’s, which had a different paint scheme four years ago, remain in place like the secondary weapons. The M-2020 is unique for having an automatic grenade launcher–a copy of the Russian-made AGS-30–on the hatch at the left side of the turret. On the right side of the turret is another surprising contraption: a tandem box launcher for Kornet anti-tank missiles. The box launcher folds into the right side of the turret and flips upward before firing. This is a mechanism similar to box launchers on NATO infantry fighting vehicles like the M2 Bradley. It’s still surprising how the M-2020 eschewed an automatic loader for the main gun despite the length and size of the hull; notice the parallel day/night sights on the right side of the turret roof for the commander and gunner.

For all its peculiarities the M-2020 is no doubt a continuation of the Songun Ho battle tank though redesigned, with a longer hull (seven wheels on either side), and now crammed with subsystems. During the live fire exercises on October 13 the M-2020’s joined older Pokpung Ho tanks that are enhancements of Soviet vintage T-62’s. There should be no doubt North Korea’s military-industrial sector has a robust tank manufacturing program going back decades–at least two countries have received medium tanks and self-propelled howitzers ordered from Pyongyang. Efforts to equip the KPA with more advanced tanks continued in the 1990s and the 2000s. By 2020, with the world reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea defied expectations with an evening military parade organized to show off new conventional weapons. The tank fleet of North Korea may surpass the high estimate reaching 4,500 units when many different tracked fighting vehicles with large caliber main guns are counted. By comparison the ROK Army maintains a smaller but better engineered fleet of its own locally made K1-series and K2 tanks.

The sudden uptick of North Korean military propaganda since February this year is seen as a constant warning directed at a three-way alliance established by the US with Japan and South Korea in late 2023. The response and rhetoric from Kim has been interpreted as a dramatic shift after years of failing to restart diplomatic contacts with the US. Apparently, with highly publicized meetings in Singapore, Hanoi, and then the DMZ with former President Trump, these engagements produced no meaningful results and since 2020 there have been no serious discussions with Washington, DC. This led to an acceleration of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program (two ICBMs have since entered service) and a commensurate focus on upgrading the armed forces.