The following article is a column by Andrei Lankov, a professor at Kookmin University and a director at Korea Risk Group, which oversees NK News and NK Pro. Views expressed in opinion articles and columns are exclusively the author’s own and do not represent those of NK News.

Even though North Korea’s top military officials risk purges and serve a dictator ruling over a failed state, they’re highly unlikely to rebel against Kim Jong Un any time soon.

Military coups tend to dominate global headlines, but they are actually the exception today — not the rule. While there were 426