North Korea has more than 7,000 underground military bases

Experts say these four tunnels give North Korea the ability to secretly deploy troops equivalent to a brigade to infiltrate South Korea within just one hour.

A North Korean tunnel near the inter-Korean border. Photo: Deltadart.

A recent report by the South Korean Ministry of Defense said that North Korea currently has more than 7,000 military bases and reserve warehouses built solidly underground or inside mountains, according to Yonhap.

According to reports, North Korean engineers have shown great ability in designing and constructing underground tunnels at great depths, and after the 1950-1953 war, Pyongyang used this tactic to conceal military secrets and protect important facilities from surprise enemy attacks.

According to the National Interest, in 1974, the US and South Korean militaries discovered a large tunnel, dug one kilometer deep into the southern part of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the North and South Korean border.

Through the exploitation of a North Korean defector, the US and South Korea discovered another tunnel, more than 1.5 km long and more than 2 meters wide, in 1978. Since then, at least four tunnels have been discovered, with reinforced concrete slabs, lighting and ventilation systems, and rails to carry dirt and rock out.

Experts say these four tunnels give North Korea the ability to secretly deploy troops equivalent to a brigade to infiltrate South Korea within just one hour.

Tensions in US-North Korea relations have increased in recent months, especially after Pyongyang successfully tested a hydrogen bomb and launched two ballistic missiles over Japan in just one month.

US President Donald Trump said on Twitter on October 7 that making a deal with North Korea would only make US negotiators look "stupid" and emphasized that "only one thing will work" with Pyongyang, raising speculation that he might choose military measures to stop the country's nuclear program.

According to VNE