Ruled by a military dictatorship since it was formed in 1948

it often describes itself as a “self-reliant” socialist state with a cult of personality around its leader, Kim Jong-un

The country is technically still at war with its southern neighbour

since the Korean War armistice was agreed in 1953

It has had a frosty relationship with the West ever since

particularly over its continued development of nuclear weapons

So just how strong is North Korea's military?

North Korea's official title is the Democratic People's Republic of Korea

When it comes to sheer numbers, the country's military is very impressive

1.2 million service members, or 5% of the North Korea's population, serve on active duty

with another 800,000 personnel in reserve

making it the fourth-largest army in the world behind China, India and the United States

It also dwarfs its neighbour, with roughly twice as many troops as South Korea

Experts believe North Korea's military spend could be as much as 24% of the country's national income

Pyongyang also has 4,000 battle tanks and 2,500 armored personnel carriers

The country's navy is a lot smaller, with around 800 vessels

These comprise 430 frigates and patrol vessels and around 70 submarines

In the skies, North Korea has 820 combat aircraft

including MiG-23 and MiG-29 fighters and Su-25 ground attack aircraft

The country has 21,000 artillery pieces

many of which are believed to be targeted on South Korea's capital, Seoul

While their armed forces might be immense, their weapons and equipment are largely obsolete

North Korea's diplomatic and economic isolation has led to their military capabilities to decline

Their troops are also poorly fed

with defectors often speaking of the hunger they suffered during their military service

This imbalance between North Korea and its rivals

is one of the main reasons why the rogue state has built its own nuclear arsenal

- to serve as a strong deterrent against invasion

in the last decade the country has progressed from having a handful of crude atomic bombs

to up to 20 nuclear warheads

capable of being loaded on short and medium range missiles

The country's short-range Hwasong-5 and 6 missiles can reach targets throughout South Korea

while its medium-range Nodong missiles could strike Japan

In 2017 North Korea tested its largest nuclear device to date

as well as demonstrating that its intercontinental ballistic missiles, or ICBMs,

could now potentially strike the mainland of the United States

The country has also pursued advanced cyber warfare capabilities so that in the event of war with the South

it could attack critical infrastructure and command-and-control networks

The country's cyber capabilities were first recognized in the 2014 Sony Pictures hack

allegedly perpetrated by North Korea in response to the studio's comedy movie The Interview

about a plot to assassinate Kim Jong-un

The U.S. also believes North Korea was behind the 2017 WannaCry ransomware attack

that targeted computers running Microsoft Windows

With the election of Donald Trump,

tensions between North Korea and the United States initially escalated further

with the president mocking Kim Jong-un as “rocket man”

and threatening the rogue state with “fire and fury” if it endangered the U.S.

But 2018 saw a remarkable change in diplomacy between North Korea and the West

First, North and South Korea marched together during the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang

Then, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un agreed to talks with a summit

held in Singapore between the two nations in June

The leaders agreed to work towards denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula,

but there were few details over what exactly that would entail

North Korea has not carried out nuclear tests for more than a year,

while the U.S. has not taken part in major joint exercises with South Korea

But a lack of nuclear disarmament by North Korea has led to tensions rising again

The U.S. wants to see the country getting rid of its nuclear weapons

before it eases economic pressure

but Kim Jong-un has warned that he may change his approach

if Washington persists with sanctions

Whether continued dialogue can lead to a nuclear free Korea remains to be seen

While there is a real opportunity to forever improve relations between North Korea and the West,

the secretive nature of Kim Jong-un's totalitarian state

means it is hard to know whether a potentially catastrophic conflict could still be on the horizon