But the "Day of the Sun" was clouded in uncertainty as the world waited to see if Kim Jong-un, the country's third-generation ruler, would provoke a potential regional crisis with what would be North Korea's sixth nuclear test in just over a decade, or a test launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile.
But it is also meant to send an unmistakable message to Washington, Seoul, Tokyo and other capitals about the isolated, nuclear-armed North's military might.
Pyongyang recently launched a long-range ballistic missile and claims it is close to perfecting an intercontinental ballistic missile and nuclear warhead that could attack the United States mainland. According to a White House foreign policy advisor, the United States was assessing military options to that effect.
He diverted the Carl Vinson aircraft carrier and its strike group toward the Korean peninsula last weekend in a show of force.
"We are sending an armada".
According to the news outlet, the White House said the decision to deem the logs "presidential records" - which are not subject to federal public request laws - is due to "the grave national security risks and privacy concerns of the hundreds of thousands of visitors annually".
China, the North's sole major ally, and Russian Federation have both urged restraint, with Beijing's foreign minister Wang Yi warning Friday that "conflict could break out at any moment".
Mr Han Song said North Korea changed its military strategy two years ago, when the reports of "decapitation strike" training began to really get attention, to stress pre-emptive actions.
Its army vowed Friday a "merciless" response to any U.S. provocation but diplomats in Pyongyang are more sanguine, pointing out that the North raises its rhetoric every spring, when Washington and Seoul hold annual joint exercises that it views as preparations for invasion.
Despite reports that Washington is considering military action if the North goes ahead with another nuclear test, the vice-foreign minister did not rule out the possibility of a test in the near future.
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Lavrov said he emphasized the need for a wide-ranging OPCW probe during Wednesday's talks in Moscow with U.S. The nub of the US-Russia disagreement lies in how and how soon an orderly transition can be achieved.
Goose-stepping soldiers and marching bands filled the square, next to the Taedonggang River that flows through Pyongyang.
Japan's Nikkei business daily said the government had discussed how to rescue an estimated 57,000 Japanese citizens in South Korea as well as how to cope with a possible flood of North Korean refugees coming to Japan, among whom might be spies.
Trump and Tillerson have every right to be exasperated at North Korea and to try to reshape USA policy on the Korean peninsula.
"Our toughest counteraction against the USA and its vassal forces will be taken in such a merciless manner as not to allow the aggressors to survive", it added.
Mr Trump had earlier said that if China was not prepared to help, the United States would "solve the problem without them". "A parade is a highly visible but non-kinetic way of showing off capabilities", he told AFP.
A White House foreign policy adviser said yesterday that the U.S. is assessing military options in response to North Korea's weapons programme.
Beijing has made clear its frustration with Pyongyang's stubbornness but its priority remains preventing any instability on its doorstep, and it has been unnerved by the sabre-rattling.
Pyongyang was "upset with all of its neighbours", said Bruce Bennett of the Rand Organisation and Kim needs to "demonstrate defiance".
North Korean culture is that its leaders "are supposed to reign by power", he said.
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