Seoul [South Korea], October 12: North Korea's leadership showcased the country's new intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time on Friday evening at the first major military parade in two years.
The official North Korean news agency KCNA praised the missile on Saturday, presented to international guests, as the "the most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system." North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un reportedly urged the armed forces in a speech to develop into an "invincible" entity that would "destroy all threats." The occasion for the military parade on Kim Il Sung Square, named after Kim's grandfather, was the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea.
Among the spectators were Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Russia's former president Dmitry Medvedev and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam To Lam. A photo showed the three alongside Kim.
Missile likely capable of reaching targets in US Further photos from the parade showed the metre-long Hwasong-20 rolling past numerous spectators with North Korean flags. It is believed that the weapon's range is large enough to reach targets in the United States.
According to the KCNA, the army also showcased other weapon systems such as hypersonic missiles.
In his speech, Kim spoke of the "heroic fighting spirit" and the "victory" that the armed forces had achieved on foreign battlefields for international justice and true peace.
North Korea initially supplied Russia with missiles and artillery ammunition for its war against Ukraine and later also sent soldiers, estimates suggest several thousand men.
Kim seeks diplomatic stage The internationally largely isolated and sanctioned country last held a similarly large military parade in 2023.
The occasion then was the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North Korea's official name.
In early September, during one of his rare foreign visits in Beijing, Kim watched a military parade by the People's Liberation Army alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In bilateral talks then and now in Pyongyang, North Korea and its important ally China emphasized their willingness to increase exchanges.
Source: Qatar Tribune
