North Korea demonstrates the ‘most powerful weapon in the world’

The parade was held in Pyongyang on the occasion of a congress of the ruling Workers’ Party, at which Kim Jong-un announced an increase in North Korea’s nuclear arsenal and called the United States the country’s “greatest” enemy.

During the Thursday night parade, a smiling Kim Jong Un watched as the soldiers marched, the rolling artillery systems and tanks, as well as the planes that flew lined up to form an “8” in honor of the 8th Party Congress.

The state news agency KCNA called the new missile “the most powerful weapon in the world.” It is said to demonstrate the power of the North Korean armed forces. The missile is capable of “proactively destroying enemies outside its territory.”

This choice of words suggests that the missile’s range may be beyond the Korean peninsula and that the missile may at least reach Japan.

“The most powerful weapons in the world are ballistic missiles launched from submarines, one after another, entering the square, forcefully demonstrating the power of the revolutionary armed forces,” the state news agency KCNA said in a statement.

The photos show at least four ballistic missiles with black and white spikes being carried alongside parade participants waving flags in Kim Il Sungo Square. In South Korea, Park Won-gon, a professor at Handong International University, called the missiles “the North’s most advanced nuclear weapons.”

The rocket launch could be interpreted as a show of force at the leadership of the new US President Joe Biden, who will take office on Wednesday. The United States has 28,500 soldiers deployed in South Korea. The country’s military presence is also significant in Japan.

According to experts, Kim Jong Un can seek out Biden’s concessions with the power signals he sends. North Korea is severely suffering from international sanctions against the country for its nuclear and missile programs.

In recent years, Kim Jong Un has sought a rapprochement with the President of the United States, Donald Trump, to lift the sanctions. The leaders of both countries met three times in person. But the last summit in Hanoi in February 2019 collapsed.

Since then, talks between Washington and Pyongyang to reduce North Korea’s nuclear program have stalled. Tensions are also rising between North and South Korea.

Kim Jong Un has severely attacked Biden in the past. Among other things, he called the former vice president of the United States a “mad dog.” Biden, for his part, called the North Korean leader a “criminal” during the election campaign.

In the past, North Korea has demonstrated smaller PLBRs and shown how one of them is released during testing. However, it is not clear whether the rocket was immediately launched from the submarine or from the underwater platform.

Operating PLBRs capable of carrying nuclear warheads would give North Korea a strategic advantage. Pyongyang could launch an unexpected attack against the United States, launching missiles from positions near the country’s coastline, and retaining the ability to strike even if North Korean ground forces were destroyed.

During the party’s convention, Kim Jong Un said that North Korea had completed plans to build a nuclear submarine. However, that ship could only be admitted to the country’s armed forces in a few years.

Analysts say North Korea is trying to send a carefully considered message to the future Biden administration for concessions through a party convention and a show of military might.

From the published photos it can be concluded that at the end of the parade new short-range ballistic missiles propelled by solid fuel were shown. These missiles are easier to transport and faster to launch than liquid propellant missiles.

“They would probably like to let us know that they are getting more efficient with larger solid state rocket accelerators,” Carnegie wrote on Twitter. [Karnegio] Ankitas Panda, analyst at the International Peace Foundation.

However, Pyongyang did not launch any of its intercontinental ballistic missiles (TBRs) this time. The previous parade, held in October, featured a huge new TBR carried by an 11-axis conveyor. Analysts said it could be the world’s largest highway-powered liquid-fuel rocket.