A quietly insane gem of a story

In which the "Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army" decides that "only when the commanding officers of the navy are good at swimming, can they lead the seamen and successfully carry out the naval operation for implementing the strategic plan of the supreme command even in vast expanse of sea" and orders a "drill":

Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army Kim Jong Un, first secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and first chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, guided the drill for assessing the swimming ability of the commanding officers of the KPA Navy.

The drill organized by the order of the supreme commander was conducted in such a way that the commanding officers of the East Sea Fleet and the West Sea Fleet of the KPA Navy simultaneously started in column formations up to the turn-round point at the distance of 5 km and swam back from it.

All the commanding officers of the East Sea Fleet and the West Sea Fleet took part in the swimming drill.

Kim Jong Un met the commanding officers prior to the start of the drill and told them that the assessment of their swimming ability was of weighty importance in rounding off the combat readiness of the navy and remarkably bolstering up the combat capabilities by making the training more intense just as the anti-Japanese guerillas did in Mt. Paektu.

He said that the commanding officers should become good fighters if the army is to fight well, adding that a modern warfare requires the commanding officers to be prepared not only politically and ideologically and in military technique but physically.

"The commanding officers are not qualified if they lack physical ability, no matter what good ideological and moral qualities they have and no matter how high military and technological qualifications they are possessed of as they should stand in the van of the combat ranks," he noted.

"When the commanding officers are fully prepared, they can always lead intensive training of service personnel, shouting "Forward, following me!" not "Charge ahead!" he said.

Saying that the seamen should acquire high ability of swimming, he stressed that only when the commanding officers of the navy are good at swimming, can they lead the seamen and successfully carry out the naval operation for implementing the strategic plan of the supreme command even in vast expanse of sea.

The commanding officers renewed their resolution to fully display the might of Kim Jong Un's Navy in the assessment event, regarding the drill for assessing the swimming ability to be staged before the supreme commander as a battle field without gunfire.

He issued an order to start the drill.

The participants fully demonstrated the swimming ability they have cultivated in their day-to-day training, displaying great persevering strength, will and team spirit.

The West Sea Fleet was highly appreciated at the drill.

Then followed the assessment and review of the drill.

He expressed great satisfaction over the successful drill and set forth tasks to be fulfilled to round off the combat readiness and bolster up the combat capabilities of the naval units including the work for making swimming drill a rule and part of life of the seamen so that they may satisfactorily perform their combat missions under any circumstances. [...]

Because for a truly first-rate navy, boats are optional.