On September 3, 2025, Beijing held its largest military parade in years, marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II after Japan’s surrender. On Tiananmen Square and Chang’an Avenue, China displayed its newest weapons systems, turning the event into not only a commemorative ceremony but also a political signal of its readiness to act as an independent center of power.
Among the systems highlighted by media outlets and experts were DF-26 missiles, new mobile launchers with DF-61 intercontinental ballistic missiles, the DF-31BJ variant, and the first official display of JL-3 and JL-1 missiles. More than 100 aircraft took part in the flyover, including J-35A and J-20S fighters and H-6N and H-6K strategic bombers. For the first time, units from space, cyber, and information warfare forces also marched in the parade.
Xi Jinping said humanity again faces a choice between “peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, mutual benefit or a zero-sum game.”
The parade also used peace imagery: more than 80,000 doves and the same number of balloons were released into the sky. Even so, many observers saw the broader message differently: Beijing was demonstrating its capacity to respond to Western pressure and challenge US global leadership.
Shortly before the parade, on August 31 - September 1, Tianjin hosted the SCO summit, bringing together leaders from more than 20 countries and eight international organizations. In Beijing, Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un were given especially prominent places beside Xi; Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was also among the notable guests. Speakers repeatedly called for a fairer world order and rejected hegemony.
Western media framed both events as a challenge to Donald Trump’s foreign policy. At the same time, the durability of this alignment remains uncertain: the interests of China, India, Russia, and other participants diverge sharply, and experts say they are united more by grievances toward the United States than by a shared program. Another source of uncertainty is US policy itself, which could shift abruptly with further turns in Trump’s course or after the 2028 election.