Today, China will host a massive military parade along Changan Avenue in central Beijing, showcasing the country’s latest and most advanced weapons to commemorate the 80th anniversary of China’s victory over Japan in World War II.
WATCH LIVE: Beijing marks 80th anniversary of Japan’s WWII surrender
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President Xi Jinping delivered a speech from the Tiananmen rostrum and then inspected the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) troops from a parade car. It is the third major military parade in Tiananmen Square that Xi is overseeing as president.
World leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim are seated on the rostrum, along with serving and former top officials and generals.
Some Communist Party elders, including former president Hu Jintao and former premiers Wen Jiabao and Zhu Rongji, are also expected to attend, health permitting.
Many of the new weapons displayed by the PLA are expected to play a key role in any future conflict involving Taiwan.
Reporting by Josephine Ma, Dewey Sim, Yuanyue Dang, Enoch Wong, Vincent Choi, Alcott Wei, Richard Zhang, Holly Chik, Xinlu Liang, Amber Wang and Eugene Lee
