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North Korea to send defiant message with parade
North Korea is preparing to send a defiant message to the world with a massive parade of military might at national day celebrations on Tuesday, according to officials and analysts.Itâs their birthday? Gee, and I forgot to send a card. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il is reportedly planning the biggest military parade for more than a decade which will feature thousands of troops, tanks, artillery and missiles. The Chosun Ilbo newspaper, citing defense analysts, said the regime may choose the occasion to unveil a new multi-stage ballistic missile with a range of up to 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles). Fireworks are always nice on your birthday. North Koreaâs official media said a "mammoth" parade would mark Tuesdayâs 55th anniversary of the foundation of the communist state. Reports in Seoul said missiles and tanks have been moved to Mirim airport, about 11 kilometers outside the capital, in preparation. A Seoul government official told the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper the parade would be the biggest since 1992 when the Stalinist state celebrated the 60th anniversary of the founding of its Peopleâs Army as a guerrilla force fighting the Japanese occupation of Korea. Speculation has mounted that North Korea would use Tuesdayâs celebrations to carry out a nuclear or missile test as a follow-up to three days of acrimonious six-nation talks in Beijing late last month on its nuclear program. This explains why we havenât had a good NK rant for a while, theyâve been busy getting ready for the party. Posted by: Steve 2003-09-08 |
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