The analysts at Stratfor have the details on North Korea's April 25 military parade to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Korean People's Army. The parade featured at least four types of mobile missiles, including the Hwasongs, which Stratfor describes as a Scud derivative; the AG-1 anti-ship missile, a derivative of China's HY-1 Silkworm and HY-2 Seersucker; and the KN-02, a derivative of the SS-21 Scarab short-range ballistic missile.
What's interesting is that North Korea put its short-range missiles on display, not the Nodong intermediate-range and Taepodong long-range missiles that are always causing angst in the press. Stratfor says these short-range missiles are "the backbone of North Korea's future missile sales."
Stratfor released images captured from screenshots of the parade aired on Phoenix TV, a Hong Kong-based Mandarin Chinese television station.
"What is most notable about these, as opposed to North Korea's more infamous Nodong intermediate-range and Taepodong long-range ballistic missiles, is their functionality," Stratfor's analysis concludes. "Unlike the longer-range systems, these are battlefield missiles with relatively good guidance systems."
Meanwhile, Asia Times Online reports that a "mini-IT revolution" is taking place in North Korea.
--Catherine MacRae Hockmuth
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