880 North Korean weapons, military hardware unveiled

Despite a failed satellite launch two days earlier, North Korea Sunday rolled out what appeared to be a new ballistic missile, as the communist state marked the 100th anniversary of the birth of its founder Kim Il-sung with a massive military parade.

The unveiling came after new North Korean leader Kim Jong-un expressed his firm determination to proceed with his late father Kim Jong-il’s “military-first” policy in his first public speech.

Some 880 weapons and military hardware, including the new missile, were paraded through the Kim Il-sung square in Pyongyang as Kim looked on.

Kim, who is believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s, said, “The era during which we are threatened by our enemies’ atomic blackmail has gone forever,” an indication that the impoverished state is armed with nuclear weapons.

In its latest show of force, Pyongyang made public what is believed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile. The missile is presumed to measure 2 meters in diameter and 18 meters or more in length.

Reports said the missile was bigger than the North’s mid-range Musudan missile unveiled in October 2010. It is presumed to have a range of up to 6,000 kilometers that is capable of reaching Alaska, the United States.

Experts said the new missile may have been developed based on the Musudan. They say 50 Musudan missiles have so far been deployed. In particular, they say, the Musudan is designed to carry nuclear warheads. It is presumed to be 1.5-2 meters in diameter and 12-18.9 meters long, and have a range of up to 4,000 kilometers, making it capable of striking Guam, an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean.

In his nationally televised speech, the young Kim stressed the need to ease economic difficulties facing the North to mark its self-proclaimed arrival as a “strong and prosperous” state.

“We should take care of the precious seeds sown by great comrade Kim Jong-il to build an economically powerful state and improve the people’s living standards, and make their wishes come true,” he said.

He said, “Peace is valuable to the North. However, dignity of the nation and sovereignty of the country are more valuable."