February 8 is etched in the history of the Korean People’s Army as President Kim Il Sung, 68 years ago, developed the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army into regular revolutionary armed forces.
After Korea’s liberation (August 15, 1945), he vigorously pushed ahead with the building of the regular revolutionary armed forces on the principle of giving priority to military affairs and on the basis of the valuable experience gained in the Songun-based revolutionary leadership during the anti-Japanese armed struggle.
At that time everything was difficult and in short supply, but he put it forward as the primary task for the building of a regular army to train military and political cadres and took steps to establish a regular educational institute for the purpose and expand and strengthen it.
In November Juche 34 (1945) he went to the then Jiul-ri, Tami Sub-County, Ryonggang County, South Phyongan Province, to select a site for the institute, a parent base for training military and political cadres, and named it Pyongyang Institute.
The Pyongyang Institute was the first facility for training the military and political cadres who would contribute to the building of a modern regular army and the first institution of regular military education in Korea.

Military and political education and training are intensified at the institutions of regular military education.
He went to the institute to make a congratulatory speech at its opening ceremony and give the first lecture of the first term to its instructors and students. As honorary headmaster of the institute, he personally directed its educational work so that the institute could produce fine military and political cadres.
He ensured that the training of military cadres for services and special corps was separated from the Pyongyang Institute by setting up the Central Security Officers Training School and chose the site for the school.
In July Juche 35 (1946) he had the Central Security Officers Training School separated from the Pyongyang Institute, and pointed out the need to establish the Juche orientation in the work of training military cadres at the school. He also taught detailed ways and methods, saying that it was essential to give military knowledge suited to the country’s actual conditions by making effective use of the experience gained in military education during the anti-Japanese armed struggle.
He visited the school several times and instructed that Juche-oriented training and educational methods should be studied and military education of the students conducted dynamically.
Under his leadership the school formulated military regulations, training manual and teaching programs to meet the country’s specific situation and established the Juche-based military education system in military and political education and training of students.
Having put forward the plan of building modern air and naval forces, Kim Il Sung made sure that an air force training class was formed at the Pyongyang Institute and Naval Security Officers Training School set up there in July Juche 36 (1947), thereby training relevant cadres in a far-sighted way.
Thanks to his energetic guidance, a great number of military and political cadres were produced and the work of founding a regular army went full steam. The Korean people finally had their regular revolutionary armed forces that would defend the gains of the revolution by force of arms.
The Korean People’s Army, born of Kim Il Sung’s Juche-oriented army-building idea and sagacious leadership, is now demonstrating its might as an invincible army and safeguarding the socialist country and its people’s well-being.