Chinese ballistic missiles, fighter jets and other weapons will be displayed today at a major military parade in Beijing, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA.
The troops will march in tight formation ahead of President Xi Jinping, who heads the decades-old ruling Chinese Communist Party and leads the army as chairman of the country's Central Military Commission.
During the event, which is being held to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, Xi Jinping will deliver a speech. The audience will include more than 20 foreign leaders from countries seeking to improve or maintain close relations with Beijing. Much of the military hardware and equipment on display at the parade will be on public display for the first time, Chinese officials said. It includes strategic weapons based on land, sea and air, advanced precision warfare equipment and drones. Warplanes and helicopters will fly in formations in the skies over Beijing. This is China's first major military parade since 2019, when a similar event marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of communist China. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, a conflict that devastated the Asian country. The parade is intended to instill pride in the Chinese people and reassure them that the country is strong enough to repel any attack, the AP notes. But China's growing military power also concerns its Asian neighbors and the United States.
The heads of state of the United States, Western European countries, Japan, India and South Korea will not attend the event.
However, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made one of his rare trips abroad to attend the parade. He will be joined by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Massoud Pezizkian, as well as the leaders of about 20 other countries from Southeast and South Asia and Africa.
The event is strictly planned and controlled and will not be like parades during which crowds of people gather in the streets to watch, the AP noted.
Beijing has already installed barriers to keep the public a block away, and commercial buildings along the parade route have been emptied and will remain closed until the event is over. For most Chinese, the only way to watch the parade is on television.