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| North Koreans wave flags and walk with statues of former leaders Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il during a military parade past Kim Il-Sung square marking the 60th anniversary of the Korean war armistice in Pyongyang on July 27, 2013. (File photo by=ED JONES/AFP/GETTY IMAGES) |
[아시아뉴스통신=레악카나 기자] SEOUL: North Korea's state media announced on Wednesday that it held a national conference of war veterans earlier this week to celebrate the 69th anniversary of what it claims to be victory in the three-year conflict between South Korea and the U.S.-led U.N. troops.
The 8th National Conference of War Veterans took place in Pyongyang the previous day, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. It made no mention of the country's leader Kim Jong-un, suggesting he has skipped this year's conference. The Korean War armistice was signed on July 27, 1953, putting an end to the fight, which Pyongyang calls the Great Fatherland Liberation War. It has designated the anniversary as "Victory Day." It marked the third consecutive year for the North to hold the conference on the national holiday.
Meanwhile, observers here had paid attention to the possibility of Kim attending it and delivering a message to the domestic and international audience amid a widespread view that the secretive North has apparently completed preparations for another underground nuclear test. Members of the presidium of the political bureau, including Jo Yong-won, and other senior party officials attended the event. Kim joined the meeting last year and in 2020, and made speeches.
