President Yoon Suk Yeol and Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun inspect troops during an Armed Forces Day ceremony at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. Behind them are transporter erector launchers carrying Hyunmoo-5 ground-to-ground missiles, which were unveiled to the public for the first time. Joint Press Corps

President Yoon Suk Yeol warned Tuesday that any attempt by North Korea to use nuclear weapons would result in the regime's downfall due to South Korea's overwhelming response.

The warning came about two weeks after the North unveiled its uranium enrichment facility for the first time, with its leader Kim Jong-un publicly ordering an increase in its nuclear arsenal for self-defense.

"If North Korea attempts to use nuclear weapons, it will face a resolute and overwhelming response from our military and the South Korea-U.S. alliance. That day will be the end of the North Korean regime," Yoon said during his speech at a ceremony commemorating the 76th Armed Forces Day at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.

The president urged North Korea's leadership to abandon the "delusion" that nuclear weapons could protect them, pledging that his government will continue to strengthen South Korea's military capabilities.

"False peace, based on the enemy's goodwill, is nothing but a mirage," he added.

The Republic of Korea Army's K-2 tanks are on display during an Armed Forces Day military parade near Namdaemun Gate in central Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

During the commemorative event, the Hyunmoo-5 ballistic surface-to-surface missile, the country's largest, was unveiled for the first time. Capable of carrying an 8- to 9-ton warhead used for destroying underground bunkers, it is a crucial part of the country's deterrence structure against North Korea's nuclear threats.

The event also featured a U.S. B-1B Lancer strategic bomber, a four-engine supersonic strategic aircraft with a maximum speed of Mach 1.25 and a flight range of up to 12,000 kilometers. Although the bomber has been previously deployed to the Korean Peninsula for joint exercises with the Republic of Korea Air Force, its flyover in a public event is highly rare.

A U.S. B-1B Lancer strategic bomber conducts a flyover during a ceremony for Armed Forces Day at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. Yonhap

Later in the day, a large-scale military parade was held in down town Seoul, featuring South Korea's key military equipment including Long-range Surface-to-Air Missiles (L-SAM). The parade route, stretching from Sungnyemun Gate to Gwanghwamun Square, featured 3,000 troops and 80 pieces of military equipment.

The event included marching units of South Korean troops, the U.N. honor guard and the Eighth U.S. Army, which is stationed in South Korea. Members of the public, including high school students, also took part. It also featured a car parade of 1950-53 Korean War veterans and servicemen who were injured during duty.

This is the first time in decades that South Korea has held large-scale military parades in consecutive years, a practice not seen since the Chun Doo-hwan military regime in the 1980s when such events were annual. This year, the government declared Armed Forces Day, which falls on Oct. 1, a temporary national holiday for the first time since 1991.

A presidential decree mandates that military parades be held every five years. Since the 1990s, previous administrations typically held one parade per term. The previous Moon Jae-in administration did not hold any major military parades, reflecting the more amicable atmosphere with Pyongyang at that time.

The two military parades held under the Yoon administration reflect its hawkish stance on Pyongyang, emphasizing "peace through strength."

Republic of Korea Marine Corps personnel march during an Armed Forces Day parade at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday. Yonhap

Seoul's latest display of military strength came amid growing military threats from North Korea, which has been escalating its activities through both conventional and unconventional means.

On Sept. 13, the North revealed a facility for producing highly enriched uranium, a critical component for nuclear weapons, for the first time. Additionally, since late May, Pyongyang has launched over 5,000 trash-filled balloons across the border on 21 different occasions, with some causing fires and disrupting airport operations near Seoul.

In recent months, inter-Korean tensions have escalated to levels not seen in years, with growing speculation that North Korea may conduct a seventh nuclear test, possibly around the time of the U.S. presidential election.

Transporter erector launchers carrying long-range Surface-to-Air Missiles (L-SAM) are on display during a military parade at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap

Meanwhile, North Korea denounced the latest U.S. B-1B bomber flyover as a "bluffing military show of force" and threatened retaliatory measures.

In a statement by Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang-il, carried on Tuesday by the North's state-run Korean Central News Agency, the regime warned that it could take unpredictable strategic actions in response to the deployment of U.S. strategic assets.

"Now that the U.S. has made the deployment of strategic assets a bad habit, we will inevitably and rightfully take unpredictable strategic measures. Fresh methods of adding serious concern to the security of the U.S. mainland will surely be produced," Kim was quoted as saying. "We can review and carry out such action plans at any time."

United States Forces Korea troops march during a military parade in central Seoul, Tuesday, to mark the 76th Armed Forces Day. Yonhap