At a time when the US fleet led by an aircraft carrier was getting closer to the Korean peninsula, North Korea showed its new ballistic long-range missiles at the celebration of the 105th anniversary of the founder of the country, Kim Il Sung in Pyongyang.
The South Korean military believes that the rockets that were shown on Saturday at a military parade, were, in fact, a new intercontinental ballistic missile, the South Korean agency Yonhap reports.
There was some speculation on the eve of the parade that the communist state is taking advantage of the anniversary to implement a new missile or nuclear tests.
US military experts also believe the weapons that were shown on Saturday are some type of intercontinental ballistic missiles.
North Korea showed two new types of intercontinental ballistic missiles on trucks, which suggests that Pyongyang is working on a new concept of development of these missiles, said Melissa Hanh from American Middlebury Institute of International studies in Monterey, California. She reminded the public that North Korea has a habit of showing new concepts in parades before being tested or launched.
Pukkuksong submarine ballistic missiles were also shown at the parade for the first time. They are equipped with a range greater than 1,000 kilometers, and that is a clear sign that North Korea is advancing in their plan of setting missiles on submarines, which is harder to detect, said Joshua Pollack, editor of the Washington-based Nonproliferation Review magazine.
NBC reports that the US officials could launch a preemptive strike if they spot any reason to believe that North Korea is carrying out a nuclear weapons testing. Satellite images from Wednesday show that the North Korean test area Pungje-ri is ready for a new trial.
Warning to the USA
A close associate of Kim Jong-un, Choe Ryong Hae, addressed the crowd at the parade and sent a warning to the United States.
"If the United States continues with reckless provocations, our revolutionary forces will immediately respond with devastating attacks; we will respond in the same way", he said.
The attack of the US Navy in the Syrian military airport this month raised the question about the plans of the US President Donald Trump for North Korea.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the grandson of Kim Il Sung, relaxingly oversaw a huge parade on the Day of the Sun in the main square in Pyongyang. The square was filled with soldiers and military bands, followed by the tanks and systems of multiple launch pad for rockets and other weapons, while a single-engine aircraft flew over the parade.
There were no Chinese officials at the parade
At a military parade, in contrast to earlier examples, there were no senior Chinese officials. China is the only major ally of North Korea and on Friday they called for restraint. China warned that the dispute is on the verge of overflowing in armed conflict.
China opposes North Korea's nuclear program and supports sanctions against that country.
North Korea claims it has developed a long-range technology and is threatening to launch missiles that can hit the US mainland, but the experts believe that Koreans have no necessary technology yet.
On a Saturday they announced that the "serious war hysteria" of Trump's administration reached a "dangerous phase that can no longer be ignored."
