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North Korea expected to display missiles at pre-Olympics parade

Missiles in North Korea.
Missiles displayed in North Korea in a photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). Photo: STR / AFP / Getty Images

North Korea has plans to parade dozens of long-range missiles during a parade on the day before the Olympics is set to start, CNN’s Will Ripley and Joshua Berlinger report, citing diplomatic sources.

Context: The parade is on February 8th, North Korea's military anniversary.

  • The parade is expected to include Hwasong-15 missiles, which the North just tested for the first time last November, per the sources.
  • The sources didn’t rule out a missile test from the North “in the near future” to send a message to the U.S. as well.
  • North Korea has proposed reunification with South Korea and they plan to walk together during the Olympics. But all diplomatic breakthroughs should be taken with a grain of salt since North Korea’s track record of openings is often followed by increased tensions.

Go deeper: How North Korean diplomacy fails

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