North Korea Likely to Hold Night Military Parade Today... 3 Key Points to Watch

Large-scale event marking the 10-month anniversary
New ICBM unveiled along with message to South Korea

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] North Korea is expected to hold a nighttime military parade at Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang on the 8th, marking the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army (Army Foundation Day). This will be about 10 months since the April 25th celebration of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army last year. Since this Army Foundation Day is a milestone year marked by 5- and 10-year intervals, attention is focused on the scale, the unveiling of new weapons, and messages directed at South Korea and the United States.

A military official told Asia Economy on the day, "The parade expected the day before did not take place, and it seems that a nighttime parade will be held today."

North Korea held most parades in the morning until the 70th anniversary parade of the regime establishment in September 2018, but since the 75th anniversary of the Workers' Party founding in October 2020, it has held four consecutive parades in the evening or at midnight. The parade commemorating the 8th Party Congress on January 14, 2021, and the 73rd anniversary of the regime establishment on September 9 of the same year featured colorful fireworks and military drone formations equipped with light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs, increasing public attention. North Korea has traditionally held nighttime parades at midnight on the day itself. This time as well, late night on the 8th is expected to be the likely time for the event.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Currently, large screens, lighting towers, and fireworks equipment have been installed around Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang, the parade venue. Also, based on the formation seen in commercial satellite images of the parade rehearsal site (Mirim Airfield), up to about 10,000 troops are expected to participate.

A large number of new weapons may also be unveiled. The biggest point of interest is whether the military reconnaissance satellite, which was announced to be "ready by April," will be revealed. There is speculation that some form of military reconnaissance satellite ‘progress’ will be exposed during this parade.

Attention is also on whether a new solid-fuel engine-equipped intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) will appear. On December 15 last year, under the observation of General Secretary Kim, North Korea conducted a combustion test of a new solid-fuel rocket engine with ICBM-class thrust of 140 tons-force (tf). At the rehearsal site at Mirim Airfield, an object believed to be the new ICBM ‘Hwasong-17’ was also spotted.

Notably, at the expanded meeting of the Party Central Military Commission chaired by North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un on the 6th, a photo of a flag inscribed with the words and emblem of the ‘Korean People's Democratic Republic Missile General Bureau’ was revealed. The emblem depicts a missile, presumed to be the new Hwasong-17 ICBM, flying over the Earth along with an atomic symbol.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Missile General Bureau appears to be the organization leading nuclear and missile provocations. This is the first time the existence of the Missile General Bureau has been indirectly exposed through North Korean media, including indirect methods like this. The flag of the Missile General Bureau shown in the photo is placed right next to the Workers' Party flag that commands the entire North Korean military, indicating its very high status within the military. Some speculate that the Missile General Bureau, which has intentionally revealed its existence through this parade, may surprise the public by unveiling advanced provocation means it has developed. North Korea has used military parades as a platform to unveil new weapons, such as the Hwasong-14 and Hwasong-15 at the Army Foundation Day parade in February 2018.

In addition, attention is drawn to the appearance of South Korea-targeted short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) capable of carrying tactical nuclear warheads, such as the North Korean versions of the Iskander (KN-23), ATACMS (KN-24), and the super-large multiple rocket launcher (KN-25).

Since the thank-you speech at the super-large 600mm multiple rocket launcher presentation ceremony on December 31 last year, State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un has not issued any direct messages. It is also of interest what kind of messages directed at South Korea and the United States he will send. Yang Moo-jin, head of the North Korean Studies Graduate School, said, "Chairman Kim is highly likely to give a direct speech at the parade," adding, "Since the parade is to showcase military strength, there is a high probability that a hardline message toward South Korea and the United States will be delivered."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.