North Korea has stepped up its military deployment in an army corps near the border with China out of fear that China is "betraying" the country, South Korea's Chosun Ilbo reported Tuesday. But others say the move is a usual one.

About 80 tanks have been deployed to the 12th Corps in Ryanggang Province near the border with China. The corps has been turned into an "attack force" after reinforcement with an armored infantry unit, a unit of multiple rocket launchers, and a special warfare and sniper brigade, the paper reported.

Around 80 new armored vehicles are expected to be sent to the province's 42nd Brigade, a deployment reportedly ordered by the North's leader Kim Jong-un, according to the report.

More than 10 new tanks have already been assigned to the brigade. The North has made the latest moves due to fear of China's "betrayal" as Pyongyang is under mounting pressure to give up its nuclear program, an anonymous source told the Chosun Ilbo.

However, an anonymous source familiar with defense in both China and North Korea told the Global Times that the military reinforcement of the two countries' border is nothing unusual and plenty of new military facilities can be viewed on the north's side of the Yalu River. "These moves are mainly aimed inward, not outward, particularly in a bid to prevent anyone leaving North Korea," the source said.

The Chosun Ilbo often releases reports that are not completely true and indicate a tense relationship between China and North Korea, which is welcomed by "external forces," the source claimed.