On August 25, 1960 the great leader Comrade Kim Jong Il visited the Seoul Ryu Kyong Su Guards 105th Tank Division of the Korean People’s Army.

That day he held a long talk with the officers and men of the unit, giving them precious instructions on strengthening the KPA, including the ideas that the KPA should adopt the defence of the leader and the Party unto death as its general task, the unit should improve its combat efficiency in every aspect by conducting combat and political training just as the anti-guerillas did and the KPA should play a major role in socialist construction and the idea of developing the Korean-style defence industry.

Throughout his sacred, revolutionary career since the day when he began his leadership over the revolutionary armed forces, he paid close attention to developing the KPA into invincible armed forces and victoriously pushing forward the revolution and construction on the strength of arms.

In the 1960s he established the Party’s leadership system in the army in an all-round way and wisely led the effort to implement the Party’s military line of turning the entire army into an army of cadres and modernizing it so as to develop it into a match-for-a-hundred revolutionary army. In the 1970s he advanced the programme of modelling the entire army on Kimilsungism, the most correct army-building programme for developing the army into an eternal army of President Kim Il Sung .

Under his sagacious leadership the KPA grew into the hardcore force of the revolution which faithfully upholds the leader’s guidance in the vanguard.

Even in the 1990s when the DPRK was faced with trying ordeals and difficulties, he staunchly defended the country and socialism and opened up bright prospects for building a powerful nation by relying more firmly on the arms.

He cherished the belief that in the present world where aggressors are rife, one will lose one’s motherland if one has weak military strength and that the effort to build a powerful socialist country and improve people’s living standards will be reduced to an empty slogan. True to the firm belief, he made incessant inspections of the frontline units of the KPA to the last moments of his life, thereby enhancing its might in all aspects and laying eternal foundations for building a powerful socialist country.

Recalling his revolutionary career, the respected Comrade Kim Jong Un said on August 25, 2012: August 25, along with April 25, is a day that is etched in the history of building up our revolutionary armed forces, as well as in the history of our country. Associated with this day are the strength of our People’s Army, which takes pride in being the most powerful revolutionary army, and the image of our country, which has emerged as a world-class military power.

Ham Kwang Hyok