North Korea displays a gigantic new ballistic missile at military parade

North Korea on Saturday displayed a gigantic new intercontinental ballistic missile during a military parade to mark the 75th anniversary of leader Kim Jong Un ruling party. The ICBM rolled through Kim Il Sung square as leader Kim Jong Un watched from a rostrum, footage from state broadcaster KCTV showed. 

Analysts said the missile, showed on a transporter vehicle with 11 axles, is the biggest of its kind in the world, the largest road-mobile liquid-fuelled missile. 

The missile was “much bigger and clearly more powerful than anything in the DPRK’s arsenal,” said Harry Kazianis of the Center for the National Interest. 

Before the ICBM, Pukguksong-4a, a new submarine-launched missile would add another dimension to Pyongyang’s arsenal, was displayed at the parade, which it says it needs to deter a US invasion.

At the parade that marked the 75th year of the ruling Workers’ Party, Kim addressed the gathering, saying Pyongyang “will continue to strengthen the war deterrent, the righteous self-defence means”.

“If we don’t have our own strength, the only thing we have to do is to wipe the streaming tears and blood though our fists are clenched,” he said.

The widely anticipated display was part of commemorations of the 75th anniversary of the North’s ruling Workers’ Party, and according to Seoul’s joint chiefs of staff took place early on Saturday, several hours before it was broadcast.