In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin walks with China's President Xi Jinping and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. Photo / Alexander Kazakov, AFP
In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin walks with China's President Xi Jinping and North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. Photo / Alexander Kazakov, AFP
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russia’s Vladimir Putin flanked Xi Jinping at a massive parade in Beijing on Wednesday, capping a week of diplomatic grandstanding by the Chinese President and his allies against the West.
In unprecedented scenes, Xi shook both their hands and chatted with the pairas they walked down a red carpet by Tiananmen Square, with Putin to Xi’s right and Kim to his left.
The 90-minute event, ostensibly to mark 80 years since the end of World War II, 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.
Kicking off the parade, President Xi warned the world was still “faced with a choice of peace or war”, but said China was “unstoppable”.
The heavily choreographed event drew an acidic response from US President Donald Trump who accused the three leaders of plotting against the United States.
“Give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against The United States of America,” he wrote on Truth Social.
Birds are released at the end of a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II, in Beijing's Tiananmen Square on September 3, 2025. Photo / Greg Baker, AFP
Military hardware on show
In a show of military strength, Xi inspected the massed troops and weaponry from an open-topped limousine down Beijing’s vast Chang’an Ave before turning back to join his guests in a seating area above the 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 state media broadcast.
Beijing residents went out into the streets to catch a glimpse of a spectacular flypast involving scores of warplanes and helicopters, some making an “80” formation.
Millions of Chinese people were killed during a prolonged war with imperial Japan in the 1930s and 40s, which became part of a global conflict following Tokyo’s attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941.
Rocket artillery units are seen during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. Photo / Greg Baker
Whirlwind week
All eyes were on how the trio of Xi, Putin and Kim – who rarely leaves secretive North Korea – interacted with each other, but the state media broadcast only offered rare snatches of the three together and foreign journalists were kept at a distance and told not to film or photograph the leaders.
The event was the climax of a whirlwind week for Xi, who on Sunday and Monday hosted a slew of Eurasian leaders for a summit in the northern port city of Tianjin aimed at putting China front and centre of regional relations.
The club of 10 countries, named the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO), touts itself as a non-Western style of collaboration in the region and seeks to be an alternative to traditional alliances.
During the summit, Xi slammed “bullying behaviour” from certain countries – a veiled reference to the United States – while Putin defended Russia’s Ukraine offensive, blaming the West for triggering the conflict.
Many of the guests from the Tianjin gathering, including Putin, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and several other leaders, have joined Xi for the parade in Beijing.
However, no major Western dignitaries were among the two dozen world leaders at the event.
In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin (left) walks with China's President Xi Jinping before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II, in Beijing's Tiananmen Square on September 3, 2025. Photo / Alexander Kazakov, AFP
Political influence
Security around Beijing has tightened in recent days and weeks, with road closures, military personnel stationed on bridges and street corners, and miles upon miles of white barriers lining the capital’s wide boulevards.
China has touted the parade as a show of unity with other countries, and Kim’s attendance is the first time he has been seen with Xi and Putin at the same event. It is only his second reported trip abroad in six years.
AFP journalists captured the moment his olive-green train approached Beijing Railway Station on Tuesday afternoon, with small North Korean flags flying over one coach. He was accompanied by his daughter Kim Ju Ae.
In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, (front row L-R) Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto, Russia's President Vladimir Putin, China's President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan, North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un pose for a photograph before a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan and the end of World War II. Photo / Sergey Bobylev, AFP
Kim enjoyed a brief bout of high-profile international diplomacy from around 2018, meeting US President Donald Trump and then South Korean President Moon Jae-in multiple times.
But he withdrew from the global scene after the collapse of a summit with Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2019.
Kim stayed in North Korea throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, but met Putin in Russia’s far east in 2023.
Lam Peng Er, principal research fellow from the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore, said Kim’s visit “demonstrates to the North Koreans and the world that he has powerful Russian and Chinese friends who treat him with respect”.
“China also shows that it has convening power and political influence to bring Putin and Kim Jong Un together,” he told AFP.
