Manchukuo Imperial Army
With the establishment of Manchukuo in 1932, the situation in Gando was very unstable, with the local population rent into pro-Japanese and anti-Japanese/anti-Manchukuo factions, many of which resorted to guerrilla warfare. In an effort to subjugate the region, the Japanese recruited pro-Japanese Korean volunteers into a special warfare force and had trained by the Manchukuo Imperial Army primarily in counterinsurgency tactics.&lt;/ref&gt;