military show of force portrayed by N. Korea on 'Day of the Sun'
- 5 years ago
오늘 北 태양절... 군 "열병식설 확인된 바 없어"
North Korea commemorated the 'Day of the Sun' today.
They celebrated the birth of the regime's founder in a very different fashion compared to a few years ago when parades were held to display its military might.
Many experts see it as a sign of willingness to continue the dialogue with the U.S.
Kim Ji-yeon explains further.
Considered one of its biggest national holidays... North Korea normally celebrates April 15th as the "Day of the Sun" -- the anniversary of the birth of Kim Jong-un's
grandfather, the country's late founder Kim Il-sung.
This year, the late Kim would have been 107.
But South Korea's defense ministry said that as of Monday morning there were no signs of a military parade for the occasion.
There had been suspicions among some, including the U.S. think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies, that the North might carry out a military show of force either on the April 15th anniversary or another one on the 25th... for the foundation of the North's Korean People's Army.
But the relative silence in the North this time says a lot.
An expert says it's another sign of the North's willingness to talk.
"Despite the deadlock after the Hanoi summit,... North Korea has refrained from hostile acts that could irritate the other party, signaling that it is willing to hold another summit with the U.S."
At this time of year in 2016,... the North test-fired what was presumed to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile... followed by a large-scale military parade the following year.
Last year, though, when the two Koreas were holding their own summits, the North scaled down the celebrations... into cultural and sporty events.
To mark the occasion this year, North Korea's main newspaper, the Rodong Sinmun, praised the late founder and urged the country to "depend completely" on him until the end,... another move to solidify Kim Jong-un's grip on power.
The paper also cited the importance of Kim Jong-un's push for what he calls "self-reliant" economic growth... which he stressed at the Supreme People's Assembly last week.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.
North Korea commemorated the 'Day of the Sun' today.
They celebrated the birth of the regime's founder in a very different fashion compared to a few years ago when parades were held to display its military might.
Many experts see it as a sign of willingness to continue the dialogue with the U.S.
Kim Ji-yeon explains further.
Considered one of its biggest national holidays... North Korea normally celebrates April 15th as the "Day of the Sun" -- the anniversary of the birth of Kim Jong-un's
grandfather, the country's late founder Kim Il-sung.
This year, the late Kim would have been 107.
But South Korea's defense ministry said that as of Monday morning there were no signs of a military parade for the occasion.
There had been suspicions among some, including the U.S. think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies, that the North might carry out a military show of force either on the April 15th anniversary or another one on the 25th... for the foundation of the North's Korean People's Army.
But the relative silence in the North this time says a lot.
An expert says it's another sign of the North's willingness to talk.
"Despite the deadlock after the Hanoi summit,... North Korea has refrained from hostile acts that could irritate the other party, signaling that it is willing to hold another summit with the U.S."
At this time of year in 2016,... the North test-fired what was presumed to be an intermediate-range ballistic missile... followed by a large-scale military parade the following year.
Last year, though, when the two Koreas were holding their own summits, the North scaled down the celebrations... into cultural and sporty events.
To mark the occasion this year, North Korea's main newspaper, the Rodong Sinmun, praised the late founder and urged the country to "depend completely" on him until the end,... another move to solidify Kim Jong-un's grip on power.
The paper also cited the importance of Kim Jong-un's push for what he calls "self-reliant" economic growth... which he stressed at the Supreme People's Assembly last week.
Kim Ji-yeon, Arirang News.