N. Korea Ready for U.S. War, Leader Tells Anniversary Parade

North Korea's leader Kim Jong-Un said Saturday his country could fight any war waged by the United States, as he presided over a vast military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party.

Thousands of troops marched through the capital followed by columns of tanks, armored vehicles and ballistic missiles, in what was tipped to be one of the largest ceremonial displays of military strength in North Korea's history.

Dressed in his customary dark Mao suit, Kim struck a more belligerent note than in previous public addresses, telling the assembled masses in Kim Il-Sung square that North Korea could fight any war begun by the U.S.

"Our party dauntlessly declares that our revolutionary armed forces are capable of fighting any kind of war provoked by the U.S. and we are ready to protect our people and the blue sky of our motherland," he said.

His words were met with rapturous applause from tens of thousands of flag-waving spectators, while above the square, a large banner slung from a gas-filled balloon read: "Long live the invincible Workers' Party of Korea."

Poor but nuclear-armed North Korea often threatens to destroy the U.S. and South Korea, with which it technically remains at war after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a treaty.

As night fell after the parade -- a tribute to the ruling party that has served three generations of the Kim dynasty -- the skies of Pyongyang were lit up with a fireworks display over the banks of the Taedong River.

On the ground, roaring crowds held up their colored squares to create huge images of Workers' Party flags and spelling out the name of Kim Jong-Un.

- 'Sea of fire' - 

Announcing plans for the parade in February, the ruling party's top decision-making body had stressed the importance of "cutting-edge" weaponry suitable for modern warfare.

On Saturday it showed off what it said were long-range ballistic missiles carrying miniaturized nuclear warheads, its latest claim to the sophisticated technology which state television said could destroy enemies in a "sea of fire".

"Our powerful tactical rockets loaded with diversified and miniaturized nuclear warheads are on the move," a commentator said, as rows of the missiles, known as KN-08, were shown on screen.

A defense analyst said the more rounded end of the new missile -- which some think could reach the continental U.S. -- appeared to have been modified to allow it to be fitted with a miniature nuclear warhead, although other experts said they could be fakes.

North Korea has conducted three nuclear tests and threatened a fourth as part of a nuclear weapons and missile program that it has pursued through a barrage of international sanctions.

The country has long claimed it has technology capable of launching nuclear bombs at its distant enemies, but experts are skeptical whether it has acquired the sophisticated expertise needed to produce such weapons. 

An exhaustively researched report published this week by the U.S.-based Institute for Science and International Security estimated that North Korea had between 10 and 16 nuclear weapons as of the end of 2014.

The report argued it was likely the country could already build a warhead to fit atop a Nodong missile -- with a range of less than 800 miles (1,300 kilometers) -- but questions its reliability.

- Diplomatic isolation - 

Months of planning and preparation have gone into Saturday's celebrations, involving a mass mobilization of state personnel and resources to ensure its success.

The scale of the event was already apparent from satellite images taken four days before which showed a sprawling training ground in Pyongyang featuring some 800 tents, 700 trucks and 200 armored vehicles.

The North excels at choreographed displays of military muscle, aimed at defying the international community which has tried, unsuccessfully, to pressure Pyongyang into abandoning its nuclear weapons ambitions.

But they also reflect North Korea's diplomatic isolation, and Chinese party politburo standing committee member Liu Yunshan was the only foreign dignitary of any significance attending Saturday's event.

Kim and Liu met for talks on Friday, during which the Chinese official delivered a letter from President Xi Jinping, and voiced Beijing's willingness to work with Pyongyang on resuming multi-party talks on its nuclear program.

"The DPRK (North Korea) is willing to make efforts to improve relations between the North and the South and safeguard the stability of the peninsula", Xinhua reported the young leader as saying.

China remains North Korea's most important diplomatic ally and economic partner, even as Beijing has grown increasingly wary and impatient with Pyongyang's nuclear weapons ambitions.