North Korea has redeployed dozens of tanks from the South Korean Demilitarized Zone to the Chinese border, reports from South Korea said Wednesday.

South Korean sources speculated the movement of tanks, along with the movement of several special military units and plans to move dozens of armored personnel carriers and troops to the region, was due to "fears" of China -- North Korea's only ally -- was about to step up pressure on the Kim Jong-un regime to abandon its nuclear program.

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More than 80 tanks from North Korea's 12th Corps was moved to Ryanggang Province along the north-central border with China divided by the Yalu and Tumen rivers, according to reports in the Chosun Ilbo, a major South Korean newspaper with 2.2 million circulation.

Ryanggang Province is revered by North Koreans as the birthplace of Kim Jong-Il and sacred Baekdu Mountain. Heavy military equipment has never been deployed in the area previously, sources said.

The 12th Corps was created in 2010 as a rapid defense force designed for emergency deployment in response to Chinese activities. The Corps has been equipped recently with units featuring multiple rocket launchers, armored infantry units, a sharpshooter brigade and a special operations squadron.

Ten of the newly deployed tanks along the Yalu are outfitted with advanced designs including an automatic fire-control system and computerized systems.

Sources said around 80 armored personnel carriers were expected to be deployed along the border "soon." These vehicles carry 10 to 15 soldiers at speeds up to 80 kilometers per hour.

Tank and troop movements first reported Wednesday were made only several days after North Korea held a large military exercise aimed at rehearsing a response should an assassination attempt be made on the Great Leader.

Sources said the border situation has become more tense since the start of the year. The Chinese 39th Army held drills across from Ryanggang in April. North Korea beefed up its border defense with new concrete machine-gun positions with each platoon building three pillboxes.

North Korea also played radio broadcasts claiming South Korean businessmen in Yanji and Dandong, China actually were undercover South Korean soldiers. Broadcasts began disparaging China as Korea's historic enemy.

Beijing has tried to steer North Korea away from its nuclear program toward a more peaceful posture without success. When North Korea held a February 2013 nuclear test, China declined to veto a U.N. resolution imposing economic sanctions on Pyongyang. China this year also cut off much-needed fuel oil to the country.

TagsNorth Korea, Military, Defense, China-Korea relations, north korea news