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Recent satellite images have revealed troops rehearsing in Pyongyang amid expectations that new strategic weapons will be displayed.
North Korea “appeared to have staged” a large-scale military parade, South Korea said on Saturday, amid expectations to display new strategic weapons to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea.
“There have been indications that North Korea held a military parade in Kim Il-sung Square at dawn mobilizing a large amount of equipment and personnel,” Yonhap news agency reported, citing a short statement from the South Joint Chiefs of Staff .
“The intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States have been analyzing (the event), including the possibility that it could be the main event, (not a rehearsal),” he added.
Earlier, an official with the South Korean Unification Ministry, which is in charge of North Korean affairs, said that the government was monitoring events in Pyongyang, but that no parade had been broadcast on state media.
For weeks, commercial satellite images have shown thousands of North Korean soldiers practicing marches, and South Korean officials have said the North could use a parade to unveil a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), or a new submarine-launched ballistic missile ( SLBM).
An annotated satellite image shows the Mirim parade training ground and troop formations practicing in a replica of Kim Il Sung Square ahead of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party in Pyongyang. [Airbus Defence & Space/38 North/Pleiades © CNES 2020, Distribution Airbus DS/Handout via Reuters]
The last time North Korea broadcast a military parade live on television was in 2017, when it showed several large ICBMs amid increased tension with the United States.
The missiles were on display again in February 2018, but international media were not allowed to watch and the event, to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the state, was not broadcast live. State television broadcast recorded images later.
Shortly after, Kim began a wave of diplomacy that included meeting with international leaders such as US President Donald Trump.
While no large missiles have been exhibited since then, the country conducted a series of test launches late last year and Kim promised a “new strategic weapon” in his New Year’s speech.
Economic tensions
Denuclearization talks with Washington have been halted and South Korean officials said Thursday that Kim could use the military parade as a “low intensity” show of power ahead of the US presidential election in November.
Just posting this … Could we witness North Korea’s first nightly military parade?
1. No one can hear any parades in PY at this time (various sources)
2. On Tuesday morning, there were many night-time drilling, including the flyby over Pyongyang.Just a guess …
– Chad O’Carroll (@chadocl) October 10, 2020
In a congratulatory message to Kim on the anniversary, Chinese President Xi Jinping said he intended to “defend, consolidate and develop” ties with North Korea, state media said on Saturday.
According to KCNA, Xi said he was “very satisfied” with the achievements North Korea had made in recent years in engaging with foreign countries in the face of difficulties and challenges.
After years of cold relations during which China joined the United States and other nations in imposing sanctions on North Korea for its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, Xi and Kim met five times in 2018 and 2019.
While North Korea says it has had no confirmed cases of COVID-19, strict border closures and other measures it imposed to prevent an outbreak have further strained its economy, which relies heavily on trade with China.
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