Kim Jong Un was expected to preside over a toned-down military parade Sunday designed to showcase North Korea's strength without jeopardizing his efforts to rejoin the international community.
While Kim is likely to mark the 70th anniversary of his grandfather's regime with columns of goose-stepping soldiers and armored vehicles, analysts said he would take care displaying more provocative hardware. Showing off advancements in missiles capable of striking the U.S. risks irking President Donald Trump, who said in June that North Korea is "no longer a nuclear threat."
"Kim wants to bask in the glory of his achievement and show to the world that he is someone to be taken seriously," said Markus Schiller, a missile expert and founder of the Munich-based security consulting firm ST Analytics. "There is no need to display something new."