[ad_1]
Media playback is not supported by your device
North Korea held a rare late-night military parade on Saturday, which was attended by leader Kim Jong-un.
The parade marked the 75th anniversary of the Workers’ Party.
North Korea often uses its parades to showcase new missiles and weapons. Experts say ICBMs were evident during Saturday morning’s event.
It is the country’s first parade in two years and occurs just weeks before the US presidential election.
North Korea had not featured ballistic missiles in its parades since President Donald Trump and Kim held their first summit in 2018.
According to the South Korean military, the parade took place before dawn on Saturday. The reason for its early appearance is still unknown.
No foreign or foreign media were allowed in attendance, so analysts rely on edited images from state media being released to assess the parade.
Image copyright
AFP
During the parade, none of those involved appeared to be wearing masks.
The images showed Kim wearing a gray western-style suit, receiving flowers from children.
In a speech, he said North Korea will continue to “strengthen” its military for “self-defense and deterrence.”
He also said that he was thankful that no North Korean contracted Covid-19.
“I wish good health to all the people of the world who are fighting the evils of this evil virus,” he said.
Despite stating that the country has no coronavirus cases, Kim continues to hold high-level meetings to ensure strict restrictions are maintained.
Analysts have said that it is highly unlikely that North Korea has not experienced any coronavirus cases.
- The King of Pyongyang
- North Korea prepares for ‘largest military parade’
Matter of concern
Analysis by Alistair Coleman, BBC Monitoring
Kim Jong-un ended his speech with a shout of “Long live our great people!”, But only after acknowledging that his country was struggling economically.
But seeing military hardware rolling around Kim Il-sung Square on state television, it is clear that no expense has been spared in the North Korean military.
Analysts watching the highly choreographed event online will have noticed the soldiers armed with new assault weapons, along with what appear to be new air defense systems and armored vehicles.
However, it is the sight of new ballistic missiles that will cause more concern in foreign capitals.
First came the missile launched from a Pukguksong 4A submarine, followed by a huge intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a launch vehicle with colossal eleven axes, so new that we don’t even know what name it has been given.
North Korea has spent the last year or so saying it would develop its nuclear capabilities, and the show of the new ICBM at Saturday’s parade is designed to reinforce this message. No one knows where that leads the prospects for peace and diplomacy on the Korean peninsula.
There were no signs of anyone wearing masks during the parade. However, there were far fewer people involved in the event than usual, reports the AFP news agency.
North Korea closed its borders to the outside world in January to prevent a Covid-19 outbreak from spreading from neighboring China.
Authorities have reportedly issued “shoot to kill” orders along the border and created a buffer zone to prevent anyone from entering the country.
Image copyright
AFP
Satellite images had detected people practicing for weeks
Last month, Kim apologized for the shooting death of a South Korean. South Korea said the 47-year-old man was found by troops while floating in North waters. He was then shot and killed and his body burned, according to Seoul.
For weeks, satellite images have shown thousands of people practicing for Saturday’s parade.
Foreign officials in Pyongyang had been told to avoid traveling around the city, approaching the event venue and taking photos of the event.
