PYONGYANG // Red flags fluttered across the capital yesterday as North Korea prepared for its biggest parade ever, an event expected to serve as the public debut of the future leader, Kim Jong-un, and for the world as a rare glimpse inside one of its most insular nations.
Today's parade marks the 65th anniversary of the ruling communist Workers' Party. This year's celebration also comes less than two weeks after Kim Jong-il's re-election to the party's top post and the news that his 20-something son would succeed his father and grandfather as leader.
Even in a country known for its elaborately staged displays of military might, the scale and pomp of the festivities suggest something special.
"This is a very important event because it's being held after Kim Jong-un's debut as heir-apparent," said Yoo Ho-yeol, a professor of North Korean studies at Korea University in Seoul.
The weekend of festivities began on Friday with fireworks that lit up the sky over central Pyongyang, footage from TV news agency APTN showed. Students danced across the city's plazas and brass bands played Please Receive the Best Wishes of the People, the state-run Korean Central News Agency reported.
It culminates with the staging today of a massive parade through the streets, the largest in the country's history, North Korean officials told APTN.
The extravaganza will feature a phalanx of tanks, more than 16,000 troops and a display of the regime's prized missiles and military weaponry, according to South Korean officials.
There was no confirmation yesterday that Kim Jong-un would join his father in presiding over the parade from a viewing platform at Kim Il-sung Plaza, named after his grandfather. But the campaign to introduce him to the North Korean people - and the world - has been gaining momentum since his name first appeared in state media on September 27 in a dispatch announcing his promotion to four-star general.
If he does appear, it would be by far his most public appearance yet. Mr Yoo predicted that Mr Kim would would appear in full military dress with medals and insignia as befits a top official in a country run under a "military first" policy.
* Associated Press
