Chinese president says world faces 'peace or war' as gigantic military parade rolls past

Immortal words Leaders aim to live for ever

- Helen Davidson

Xi Jinping said the world was facing a choice between peace or war as he held China's largest ever military parade, joined by Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un, in a show of defiance to the west.

Putin and Kim, the authoritarian leaders of Russia and North Korea, were among dozens of world leaders who attended the parade, a huge display of military hardware and personnel, orchestrated to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of the second world war, which China calls the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression.

"Today, humanity is again faced with the choice of peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, win-win or zero-sum," Xi told the crowd of more than 50,000 spectators, adding that the Chinese people "firmly stand on the right side of history".

He said China was a great nation that "is never intimidated by any bullies" in an apparent veiled reference to the US and its allies, and warned that China was "unstoppable".

After his remarks, Xi stood in an open-top car to inspect the parade, greeting troops and receiving salutes, as miles of military hardware drove by and warplanes flew overhead.

The event bookended a week of diplomatic grandstanding in China, with Xi hosting dozens of leaders in Tianjin, in a push to elevate groups dominated by the global south and led by China - over western-led groups such as Nato. The years-long campaign has been aided by Donald Trump's trade tariffs and volatile policymaking, which have strained US relations with allies and rivals.

But it was the image of the three autocratic strongmen chatting and shaking hands as they walked along the red carpet in Tiananmen Square yesterday that sent the strongest message of defiance to the west.