Xi Jinping has capped a week of frenetic diplomacy by presiding over one of China’s biggest military parades and staging a show of solidarity with fellow strongmen Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un.
A procession of China’s newest tanks, drones and missiles rolled past Tiananmen Square on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the second world war victory over Japan. It was the first time the Chinese, Russian and North Korean leaders have gathered in the same place.
The People’s Liberation Army showed off its latest weapons, including hypersonic missiles, with Xi hailing troops as a “heroic force” that should develop into a “world-class military” — implying a full equal to the US’s armed forces.