N. Korean missiles ready for military parade

A Taepodong class missile is displayed during a military parade in Pyongyang on April 15, 2012. North Korea has mobilised a variety of missiles in preparation for a massive military parade later this month to mark the 60th anniversary since the end of the Korean War, a report said Friday. (AFP/File)

SEOUL (AFP) – North Korea has mobilised a variety of missiles in preparation for a massive military parade later this month to mark the 60th anniversary since the end of the Korean War, a report said Friday.

Satellite imagery has revealed more than 10,000 North Korean soldiers practising for the parade at Mirim Airport near Pyongyang, Seoul-based Yonhap news agency said.

It quoted a South Korean military source as saying short and mid-range missiles were seen installed on mobile launchers.

Military officials in Seoul are paying great attention to whether the North will present its newest missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads in the parade, Yonhap said.

The South's defence ministry said a military parade has been in preparation for the July 27 anniversary, celebrated by the North as the "Day of Victory".

"However, we cannot disclose details because they are related to our military secrets," spokesman Wee Yong-Seob told reporters.

In February, the North's ruling communist party unveiled plans to hold a military parade, mass rallies and a show of fireworks for this year's celebrations.

In a related move, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un visited a war museum built anew to mark the anniversary, Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency reported on Thursday.

The two Koreas are still technically at war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

The North has threatened to shred the 60-year-old armistice.