A military clash on the Korean Peninsula would have disastrous consequences not only for North and South Korea but also for all neighboring countries.
State television showed Kim stepping out of a limousine, wearing black suit and a white shirt, and saluting his honour guard before walking down a red carpet.
Kim Jong-un was greeted with thunderous - and extensively practised - applause as he stepped into view on a large podium on Saturday, clapping to acknowledge the thousands of soldiers and civilians taking part in the parade at Kim Il-sung Square.
Sinpo, where the Sunday launch took place, is the site of a North Korean submarine base and where the North has tested the submarine-launched ballistic missile it is developing.
"Our toughest counteraction against the US and its vassal forces will be taken in such a merciless manner as not to allow the aggressors to survive", the military statement said, according to the North's state-sponsored KCNA news agency.
But the North's Workers' Party of Korea Vice Chairman Choe Ryong-hae said in a speech Saturday that Pyongyang is ready to respond to the US with "an all-out war" including nukes.
But a USA military official, who requested anonymity to discuss planning, said the US doesn't intend to use military force against North Korea in response to either a nuclear test or a missile launch.
Choe Ryong Hae said President Donald Trump was guilty of "creating a war situation" on the Korean Peninsula by dispatching USA forces to the region.
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In an interview Friday with The Associated Press, North Korea's Vice Minister Han Song Ryol said President Donald Trump's tough tweets toward Pyongyang were adding to a "vicious cycle" of tensions.
China warned on Friday that tensions on the Korean Peninsula could spin out of control, as North Korea said it could test a nuclear weapon at any time and an American naval group neared the peninsula in a show of resolve.
The North has been increasingly challenging the U.S.in rhetoric following ambiguous language from the Trump administration as well as the recent missile strike against Syrian government forces.
Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida made the comment to reporters Saturday just as a massive parade started in North Korea marking the 105th birthday of the country's late founder, Kim Il Sung.
"Ryomyong Street is an accomplishment that the North wants to promote on the economic front", an official at Seoul's unification ministry, told South Korean Yonhap news.
Wang last month urged North Korea to suspend its nuclear weapon and missile tests in exchange for South Korea and the United States putting their war games on hold, reviving a proposal first raised by Pyongyang.
It has since conducted a number of shorter-range missile tests - some of which landed in the sea, less than 200 miles off the Japanese coast. The South Korean government had said earlier this year that Kim Won Hong was sacked from his job as state security minister, presumably over corruption. That led North Korea to issue routine threats of attacks on its rivals if they show signs of aggression. These missiles concern South Korea because they're harder to detect before launch than liquid-fuel missiles, which need to be filled with fuel before launch and also require fuel trucks and other vehicles that could be spotted by satellites.
"What analysts believe is that this is sending a message that Kim Jong-un maintains his dual track policy", Leeson said.
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