More than 10,000 Chinese troops march formidably in quintessential unison through Tiananmen Square, Beijing, splattering and draping the streets with blood-red and yellow flags over a menacing black and white backdrop of uniforms. In the absence of soldiers stand massive weapon presentations, all glaring towards the West.
On September 3rd, 2025, Xi Jinping hosts one of China’s largest military parades in the nation’s history, “Victory Day,” celebrating Japanese surrender in World War 2. For the celebration, Xi Jinping extends the courtesy of inviting two of the most infamous world leaders and U.S. adversaries, Vladimir Putin of Russia and Kim Jong Un of North Korea.
Normally a national celebration or parade wouldn’t be troubling, but this one seemed like less than a parade and more like a facade for the true motivation of standing against and scaring the West.
Enemies United
One particularly ominous cornerstone of the Victory Day parade was the two-and-a-half hour, closed-door, trilateral summit between Putin, Xi, and Kim, marking their first ever appearance as a trio. From my perspective and the perspective of many others including Donald Trump himself, there are three enemies, standing in firm union against the West.
But why do I take such a pessimistic stance? All three, Russia and China of concern, repeatedly speak in language that casts us as the “threat,” escalating rapidly upon Trump’s vexing foreign policy.
China and Russia “Conspire”
In a May 2024 joint statement, Xi and Putin write that “[they] intend to increase interaction and tighten coordination in order to counter Washington’s destructive and hostile course towards the so-called ‘dual containment’ of [their] countries.” China and Russia see the United States as hegemonic and threatening to their autonomy, joining forces to “take the enemy down.” Take into account that this statement came before Trump’s election and the subsequent barrage of tariffs.
Since Trump’s election and his execution of a protectionist foreign policy, Xi Jinping in particular has only intensified in animosity. In Moscow on May 8th, Xi said that “China is willing to work with Russia to shoulder the special responsibilities entrusted by the times and maintain the stability and smooth operation of the global multilateral trading system, industrial chains, and supply chains,” adding that “Today, in the face of unilateralist backflows and acts of power politics and bullying on the international stage, China will join Russia in shouldering our special responsibilities as major countries and permanent members of the UN Security Council.”
Additionally, during the Victory Day Parade speech itself, Xi adds that “The Chinese nation is a great nation that is never intimidated by any bullies and always values independence and forges ahead. In the past, when faced with critical struggles between good and evil, light and darkness, progress and reaction, the Chinese people rallied together to defy the enemy.” And while the latter two quotes don’t explicitly reference America, the use of the word “bully” almost exclusively denotes the United States. For example, on April 7th, the foreign ministry spokesperson of China, Lin Jian, referred to the United States’ foreign policy as “typical unilateralism and protectionism, and economic bullying.” This theme repeats itself.
Through these statements, China and Russia declare that the United States bullies on an international stage through power politics and through interrupting multilateral trade, and that they are willing to “defy” the United States through joint cooperation.
Donald Trump himself reflects a similar, downbeat view on this summit, referencing the United States’ aid to China during WW2 before telling Xi to “give [his] warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as [Xi, Putin, and Kim] conspire against the United States of America,” an accusation that demonstrates his cynical perspective.
Truth or Bluff
But do China and Russia’s grievances even matter? Can they realistically do anything or is it just propagandistic jibber-jabber? I believe that the strengthening quasi-alliance of China and Russia poses one of the greatest threats to crucial U.S. interests in the twenty first century.
China’s flourishing economy and technology industry increasingly challenge U.S. influence in global trade, green energy, and growing industries like artificial intelligence. And Russia, though economically weaker, leverages its substantial resources, nuclear arsenal, and its willingness to destabilize the West politically through war.
Military
Together, China and Russia can cooperate to execute their military operations. Russia provides China with advanced missile and drone systems while China helps sustain the Russian economy despite sanctions, the two with a record bilateral trade of $240 billion in 2023.
Additionally, Russia could act as a proxy through which China carries out its military campaigns. Russia has all the sanctions the UN can realistically put on them, and thus they essentially have nothing to lose. By launching operations through Russia instead of itself, China can protect its relatively unsanctioned identity whilst still accomplishing its goals.
Russia already manages to destabilize the West and drain U.S. cash through the Russia-Ukraine war, largely backed by Chinese technology and resources.
Jeopardizing Global Authority
China and Russia cooperate in diminishing U.S. influence and dismantling the foundation of US global dominance. By giving alternative supply chains and framing the U.S. as a power-hungry bully, Beijing and Moscow present a united anti-western bloc, encouraging the Global South to turn their heads from the US.
The duo also jointly works to undermine the U.S. dollar and increase trade in their respective yuan and rubles, observed through their participation in the BRICS New Development Bank.
National Security Advisor of Jimmy Carter, Zbigniew Brzezinski, argues in his book named The Grand Chessboard that “potentially, the most dangerous scenario […] would be a grand coalition of China, Russia, and perhaps Iran, an ‘anti-hegemonic’ coalition united not by ideology but by complementary grievances. It would be reminiscent in scale and scope of the challenge once posed by the Sino-Soviet bloc, though this time China would likely be the leader and Russia the follower.” And so, following the Soviet Union, his prophecy fulfills itself. China and Russia work together out of grievance against the US, striving to destroy U.S. hegemony from the ground up.
A Military Presentation
So now that I’ve covered the doom-and-gloom geopolitical implications of the alliance, let’s look at some weapons. Xi Jinping proudly paraded his country’s new awe-inspiring military technology, another display to intimidate the West. I’ll cover some of the more impressive, interesting or threatening devices.
New Nuclear Missiles
China unveiled an array of nuclear weapons that can be deployed from land, air, and sea. This triad includes an upgraded version of the DF-5C intercontinental ballistic missile with the ability to strike any target globally, air launched missiles, and the JL-3, China’s most modern missile launching submarine. In addition, China showcased the DF-61, a nuclear intercontinental missile that is road mobile, allowing it to be concealed instead of having a predictable, targetable location.
Underwater Drones
China also displayed torpedo-shaped, underwater drones. Analysts suggest that, assuming they are scalable, the submarine drones will set a new precedent for naval warfare and exploration. Maritime analyst H.I. Sutton wrote that, “It has long been a working assumption that Chinese naval technology is decades behind the West. And that Chinese engineers are not inclined to innovate. These attitudes have been shown to be outdated, yet they persist. These new XXLUUVs are thus yet another wake up call for Western planners.”
Robotic Wolves
Finally, and in my opinion the most interesting, are the “robot wolves.” Most insights on these land drones are only speculative given that the wolves didn’t perform any actions but were rather just mounted on other moving vehicles. Assuming they aren’t made of Styrofoam, these robots could have various frightening capabilities considering what they can be equipped with.
Final Thoughts
To round this up, China made a striking display of intimidation during the Victory Day Parade. They managed to further express their deepening ties with Russia and North Korea, raising the formidable wall that the United States must face. Am I worried though? While I don’t foresee an apocalyptic, war-ridden destruction of our country (U.S. military spending in 2025 more than doubles that of Russia, China, and North Korea combined disregarding possible corruption), China and Russia have the power and plan to displace the U.S. of its role as the primary global actor. The best we can realistically do is continue on our capitalism-driven stampede of innovation and maintain our diplomatic relationships with our allies and those who could potentially turn to China and Russia.
Stay tuned to The Roundup for more viewpoint articles.
