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| North Korea's Military Parade (2007) |
By Ankit Panda
North Korea commemorated the 70th anniversary of the Korean Worker’s Party’s founding, with China looking on.
On Saturday, October 10, North Korea celebrated the 70th anniversary of the founding of Korean Workers’ Party. At the center of the celebrations was a major national parade through Pyongyang’s Kim Il-sung Square, which featured everything from goose-stepping Korean People’s Army (KPA) troops and slow-rolling jungle camouflaged transporter erector launchers (TELs) for North Korea’s latest and greatest missiles. For Asia observers who’d watched China’s September 3 parade a little over a month ago, the spectacle was familiar in its form but clearly different in its details.
Adding that classically North Korean touch to the entire event, Kim Jong-un delivered remarks, expressing his gratitude and admiration for the KPA and notifying the world that North Korea’s soldiers were “ready for any kind of war against the United States.” Kim’s speech brought to life the words that traditionally flow from the regime’s state media outlet Rodong Sinmun, which regularly calls for war against South Korea and the United States. Notably, Kim’s remarks did not include any references to the country’s nuclear weapons program or threaten nuclear weapon use. For Kim, the parade was a rousing propaganda success. Clad in black and there to be seen by all, the event was an opportunity for the young leader, rumored to have been beleaguered by factionalism and opposition within his own government, to emphasize his command over the country’s armed forces.
Read the full story at The Diplomat