Pyongyang, a military parade to celebrate the country's 70th anniversary. Without nuclear missiles

In tens of thousands they marched waving colored plastic flowers. After the parade, an artistic ceremony and gymnastics: the "Mass Games" start again. Projected the image of the embrace with Moon Jae-in.

Seoul (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A military parade to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Communist country, with an important absence: nuclear warheads. The "Arirang Mass Games" are also returning, a series of artistic and gymnastic performances that will last until October, for the first time since 2013.

The military parade was held yesterday in Pyongyang, in the presence of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his wife Ri Sol Ju, in Kim Il Sung square. Tens of thousands of citizens of the capital kicked off the event, parading with colorful plastic flowers in their hands. Following this, thousands of soldiers marched along the square, followed by tanks and other military vehicles. Some aircraft flew over the area, forming the number "70" in the air. According to foreign media invited for the event, the big absentees were the ICBM intercontinental ballistic missile. Kim Yong-nam, the nominal leader of the state, addressed the crowd emphasizing the importance of economic development for the country.

After the parade, Kim and his wife attended the first artistic and gymnastic performance of the "Massa Arirang Games" at the May Day Stadium (see photo 4). It is the first time since 2013 that these games have been held, a series of artistic and gymnastic events to celebrate the country. During the performance, the organizers made use of technologies such as drones and projections. The images projected also included the embrace between Kim Jong-un and the South Korean president Moon Jae-in, during the summit of 27 April.

The absence of the ballistic missiles in the parade seems to testify Kim Jong-un's will not to provoke the United States, a few days before the third inter- Korean summit. On September 18th, Moon will travel to Pyongyang to meet Kim. The summit between the two Koreas comes to a standstill with the US, following the decision of US President Donald Trump to cancel the trip of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in North Korea.

• north korea
• south korea
• inter-Korean dialogue
• peace
• dialogue
• intercorean summit
• kim jong-un
• military parade
• nuclear