<p>In a two-yearly defence white paper, the ministry said the size of the special forces had risen by 20,000 to 200,000 over the past two years.<br /><br />But the total size of the North's military remained unchanged at about 1.19 million, the paper said.<br /><br />It also confirmed the communist state deployed its new battle tank, "Pokpung-ho" ("Storm Tiger"), which reportedly made its debut in 2002.</p>.<p>North Korea claims the Pokpung-ho is comparable or superior to the Russian T-90 developed in the 1990s.</p>.<p>The paper did not say how many of the new tanks the North has deployed for operational use.</p>.<p>The overall number of North Korean tanks rose to some 4,100 as of last month from 3,900 in 2008, the paper said.<br /><br />But most of the newly added tanks were old-style equipment deployed in the rear, a military intelligence official told a briefing on the policy paper.<br /><br />Cross-border tensions are high after the North last month shelled a South Korean border island, killing four people including civilians.</p>
<p>In a two-yearly defence white paper, the ministry said the size of the special forces had risen by 20,000 to 200,000 over the past two years.<br /><br />But the total size of the North's military remained unchanged at about 1.19 million, the paper said.<br /><br />It also confirmed the communist state deployed its new battle tank, "Pokpung-ho" ("Storm Tiger"), which reportedly made its debut in 2002.</p>.<p>North Korea claims the Pokpung-ho is comparable or superior to the Russian T-90 developed in the 1990s.</p>.<p>The paper did not say how many of the new tanks the North has deployed for operational use.</p>.<p>The overall number of North Korean tanks rose to some 4,100 as of last month from 3,900 in 2008, the paper said.<br /><br />But most of the newly added tanks were old-style equipment deployed in the rear, a military intelligence official told a briefing on the policy paper.<br /><br />Cross-border tensions are high after the North last month shelled a South Korean border island, killing four people including civilians.</p>