Photo credit: France 24
Chinese President XI has said humanity must choose between peace and war as he held his country’s largest-ever military parade on Wednesday.
France 24 reports that he was accompanied by Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un as the military displayed in hypersonic missiles, underwater drones and a new intercontinental ballistic missile at Bejing’s Tiananmen Square
The occasion capped a week of diplomatic grandstanding by the Chinese president and his allies against the West. XI shook both leaders’ hands as they walked down a red carpet by the Square.
Ostensibly too mark the end of World War II, the event was a chance for XI to put on an extravaganza to showcase China’s military prowess and bring together friendly leaders to send a message to the rest of the world.
President XI warned the world was still “faced with a choice of peace or war”, but said China was “unstoppable”.
However, the event drew an acidic response from US President Donald Trump who said: “Give my regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States of America.”
XI inspected the massed troops and weaponry from an open-topped limousine in an apparent show oof military strength. He then turned back to join his guests in a seating area above he iconic portrait of Mao Zedong on Tiananmen, the entrance gate of the historic Forbidden City.
China’s huge collection of military vehicles and heavy weapons rolled past the dignitaries, while images of thousands of servicemen and women in immaculate uniforms marching in tight ranks and soldiers jumping in and out of vehicles were shown in a slick media broadcast.
Much of the weaponry and equipment in the parade was being shown to the public for the first time, according to Chinese military officials. Beijing residents went out to catch a glimpse of a spectacular flypast involving scores of warplanes and helicopters making an “80” formation.
Millions of Chinese were killed in a prolonged war with imperial \Japan in the 19930s and 40s, which became part of a global conflict after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
All eyes were on how the three leaders interacted with each other. However, the state media only offered rare snatches of them together. Foreign journalists were kept at a distance and told not to film or photograph them.
XI had on Sunday and Monday hosted a number of Eurasian leaders in the northern port city of Tianjin aimed at putting China front and centre of regional situations. The club of ten countries , named Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), parades itself as a non-Wrrstern style of collaboration in the region and seeks to be an alternative to traditional alliances.
