North Korea is set to hold a massive military parade in Pyongyang today,... a day before the Winter Olympics kick off in the South.
Marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army,... the parade is likely to feature thousands of soldiers and weapons,... including intercontinental ballistic missiles, tanks and other military hardware.
Satellite images show the regime has been rehearsing with 13-thousand troops,... and South Korea's unification minister says the parade looks to be "quite intimidating."
A former ex-CIA officer says the rehearsal and the parade itself will be "very valuable" for intelligence purposes,... and other observers say the decision to stage such a parade is a deliberate attempt to upstage the Games and stir up fear.
The showcase of military might also comes a day before North Korean leader Kim Jong-un sends his sister, Kim Yo-jong, to the South to mark the start of the Olympics.