North Korea marks 70 years of the ruling party
North Korea has marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party with a lavish military parade. DW takes a look at what is being described as one of the secretive country's biggest ever celebrations.
Huge celebration
Thousands of goose-stepping soldiers filed through Pyongyang's main Kim Il Sung Square, named after North Korea's founding leader, as the country marked the ruling party's 70th birthday on Saturday. The buildings around the plaza were festooned with red party flags and the national colors of blue, red and white.
Show to remember
Jet planes flew in formation overhead, as cheering crowds below held up colored squares to spell out a giant "70." The carefully choreographed festivities took months of careful planning and a mammoth mobilization of state personnel and resources.
Close friends
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un saluted during the military parade alongside Liu Yunshan (third right), a senior official from China's ruling Communist Party. China was the only country to send a diplomat to attend the 70th anniversary celebration. North Korea is politically isolated in the international community, and China remains an important diplomatic ally and trading partner.
Military might
Kim presided over the parade as troops marched in formation, led first by a corps of soldiers dressed in the style of the revolutionary force that fought Japan during World War II.
Weapons on display
Then came columns of tanks, armored vehicles, rocket launchers and ballistic missiles, in a show aimed to boost patriotism and demonstrate North Korea's military strength. When plans for the grand parade were announced back in February, the ruling party's top decision-making body stressed the importance of "cutting-edge" weaponry.
Dear Leader
Dressed in his customary black suit, Kim Jong Un made a rare speech at the parade, telling the cheering crowds that the country was ready to fight threats posed by the US. "Our revolutionary armed forces are capable of fighting any kind of war provoked by the US and we are ready to protect our people and the blue sky of our motherland," he said.
Powerful dynasty
Kim Jong Un is the third generation in his family's dynasty. His grandfather, Kim Il Sung, founded the Workers' Party in 1945 and was later succeeded by Kim's father, Kim Jong Il (above). The original leadership of Kim Il Sung spawned a personality cult in the 1960s that redefined the party "as the party of the leader, and has remained so ever since," North Korea expert Andrei Lankov told AFP.