Xi Jinping hailed the “great regeneration of China” as he hosted Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un for Beijing’s biggest ever military parade.
The three leaders, who have been labelled the “axis of upheaval”, watched on as troops, tanks, and other military hardware put on a show of force in the Chinese capital.
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After being flanked by his Russian and North Korean counterparts as they emerged together at the start of the ceremony, Mr Xi paid tribute to his country’s soldiers who fought “the Japanese invaders” during World War Two.
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Xi: We will defend our sovereignty
The parade marked the 80th anniversary of Japan’s defeat, which brought the conflict to an end.
“It is an important part of our history, and we made our contribution to saving the people, defending peace, and ensuring victory,” Mr Xi said.
He called on countries to “look after each other” to “avoid the repetition of tragedy”, before declaring China would “accelerate our development and defend our national integrity and sovereignty”.
Mr Putin and Mr Kim represent two of the Chinese president’s closest allies, with both leaning heavily on Beijing for trade – the former especially reliant since being ostracised by the West over the war in Ukraine.
Trump sends a message
Donald Trump’s attempts to smooth over US-Russia relations, and bring an end to that conflict, have so far not achieved anything significant.
Posting on Truth Social as soldiers marched through Tiananmen Square, the US president suggested China and its allies were conspiring against Washington.
“May President Xi and the wonderful people of China have a great and lasting day of celebration,” he said.
“Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States.”
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For Mr Xi, the parade was a chance not just to commemorate its role in World War Two, but to showcase itself as a significant alternative to a postwar world order dominated by the US.
Mr Trump’s isolationist foreign policy, including cuts to overseas aid, has – according to his critics – given China a tantalising opportunity to flex its muscle.
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Concerns remain about whether Beijing may one day make a move on Taiwan, while other nations – notably India – become more drawn into its trade orbit due to Mr Trump’s aggressive tariffs.
The parade came after an economic summit in Beijing, with Indian PM Narendra Modi among the attendees.
China could pose ‘huge threat’ to US
Philip Shetler-Jones, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, told Sky News that China’s impressive military – if allied with Russia’s – could “pose a huge threat to American forces” in the Pacific.
“In Japan particularly, people are quite mindful there are joint exercises between Chinese and Russian forces using nuclear-capable bombers, ships, and more recently submarines,” he said.
“I think the intention is to imply that if it came to full-scale conflict involving the US, then China would expect to have collaboration with Russia – and perhaps North Korea as well.”
