standing army

Thousands of soldiers marched through downtown Pyongyang in the parade, a relatively small contingent representing the roughly 1.2 million troops of one of the world’s largest standing armies.

While permanent standing armies existed since World War I, military spending was now central to both industrial strength and economic prosperity.

It appears that the country's leader Kim Jong Un has directed much of his limited resources into missiles and nuclear weapons rather than his standing army.

He also took aim at the prime minister for announcing a "standing army" of specialist police officers to help tackle the disorder.

After chairing an emergency Cobra meeting of ministers and senior police chiefs, Sir Keir announced a "standing army" of specialist officers to tackle the disorder.