North Korea celebrates main holiday under surveillance due to new tests

Seoul, Apr 15 (EFE).- North Korea celebrated its main national holiday Thursday under the watchful eye of South Korean and United States military intelligence over the possibility that Pyongyang will carry out a new test of mass destruction weapons.

No unusual activity has been detected by the northern army so far, Kim Jun-rak, spokesman for the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at a Thursday press conference.

Seoul and Washington are closely watching what is happening in North Korea, which celebrated the “Day of the Sun,” on Thursday, the country’s most important holiday commemorating the birth of founder Kim Il-sung, grandfather of the current Supreme Leader. .

Several signs point to the possibility of Pyongyang carrying out a new missile test or presenting a new submarine model.

During the nine occasions on which current leader Kim Jong-un has celebrated the “Day of the Sun” until 2019 since his father died in 2011, Pyongyang has carried out projectile tests on five of them.

Satellites in recent days have captured modifications made to the submersible launch platform to test ballistic missiles for submarines in the Sinpo shipyards and the reforms in Kim’s mansion near Sinpo where the leader could stay if he visited the area.

South Korean state agency Yonhap said last weekend, citing an anonymous source close to the matter, that Pyongyang is ready to present its new submarine, developed and manufactured in Sinpo.

The submersible, which intelligence analysts call Sinpo-C, is an improved and larger version of its original Sinpo submarine with nuclear propulsion and the capacity to carry 3-4 ballistic missiles (the original Sinpo only carries one.)

Experts believe that, regardless of whether or not it introduces this new submarine, Pyongyang could soon test a new missile model for it.

North Korea carried out two missile tests in late March at a time marked by the revision of the new US strategy to deal with the regime, which has not renewed renegotiations with Washington to discuss disarmament and relaxation of sanctions since 2019.

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is visiting the US capital from Thursday, as analysts in turn estimate that the regime could try to hijack the agenda and add pressure in the framework of the summit he will hold Friday with US President Joe Biden. EFE

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