North Korean soldiers appear to have started assembling at a military parade training compound in Pyongyang, according to NK Pro analysis of satellite imagery, as evidence continues to mount of plans to hold a parade this October.

The likely upcoming parade will be a chance for Kim Jong Un to show off his latest long-range nuclear missiles, new drones and a range of other weapons amid increased arms exports and claims of “exponential” nuclear warhead production to deter the U.S. and South Korea.

Around 80 or more troop-carrying trucks first appeared inside the Mirim compound in late June parked beside both the east and west wings of the April 25 Hostel, Planet Labs high-resolution imagery shows. 

Objects similar in appearance to one of the confirmed clusters of troop trucks, but three times its size, then showed up in a July 9 lower-resolution image, suggesting up to 150 more trucks may have arrived.

The preparation process so far mirrors military parade preparations at Mirim in the past, with signs of troops first arriving at the two wings of the April 25 Hostel at the east and west ends of the compound, before hundreds of troop trucks park at the center next to the Kim Il Sung Square replica where soldiers perform months of practices to perfect synchronized marching.

Imagery in the coming weeks is expected to show more trucks arriving, thousands of troops marching in group formations and signs of weapon launch vehicles starting driving formation training as well.

Though state media has yet to comment on any military parade plans, there have already been various signs of preparations such as remodeling efforts at the Mirim training base in recent months.

North Korea has also held a large-scale military parade every five years on Oct. 10 since 1995 to mark the official founding anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), while state media has promoted the upcoming 80th anniversary in October as an occasion for major events and celebrations.

DPRK leader Kim Jong Un has organized seven military parades since 2020. Three were held in 2023 alone, though the final one in September that year was a scaled down “paramilitary” event. 

The most recent full-scale military parade took place in downtown Pyongyang in July 2023.

While Chinese leader Xi Jinping traveled to Moscow to watch a military parade in May and Russian leader Vladimir Putin is expected to return the favor at a huge parade in Beijing on Sept. 3, it’s not yet clear if either leader will attend Kim’s big bash.

Besides a parade this coming October, Kim also appears set to put on the first “mass games” propaganda show since 2020 as part of the party foundation day celebrations.

Edited by Alannah Hill