North Korea may hold military parade on eve of Olympics, analysts say

SEOUL: North Korea may be preparing to hold a military parade on the eve of next month’s winter Olympics in South Korea, analysts and diplomats say, even as the two countries have sought to mend ties.

The North’s continued development of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles in defiance of United Nations Security Council resolutions has spurred more sanctions and talk of possible military strikes by US officials.

Western diplomats in Pyongyang have said some international defence officials received invitations to a 70th anniversary commemoration of the Korean People’s Army on Feb 8.

Recent commercial satellite imagery shows formations of North Korean troops marching at a parade training ground, said Scott LaFoy, an analyst with the website NK Pro, which monitors North Korea.

“The parade appears to involve 28 formations of infantry or other military personnel, a traditional military band, and possibly additional personnel,” LaFoy wrote in an analysis of the satellite imagery. Some military vehicles could also be involved, he added.

If North Korea conducts a large military demonstration on Feb 8, it would come a day before the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea. That event will see athletes from the two sides march under a single flag, in a demonstration of unity after kicking off official talks for the first time in two years in January.

A display of military might by Pyongyang could threaten that fragile detente. — Reuters