The military might of the People's Republic of China was on full display in a parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two on Wednesday. Thousands of miles away, at the White House in Washington DC, Donald Trump was paying attention.
They were hoping I was watching, and I was watching, he said. The American president didn't detail his thoughts about the massive celebration sprawled across Tiananmen Square, except that it was very, very impressive. The message from China – to Trump and to the world - seems fairly clear: there is a new and growing center of power in the world and a new alternative to the American-backed order of the past century.
Trump's remarks during a meeting in the Oval Office with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, also on Wednesday, shed little light on the matter. They were the culmination of a typically circuitous series of reflections by the American president on the happenings in China over the past several days. It was a mix of ambivalence, grievance, and concern.
During a Tuesday podcast interview, Trump was nonchalant about the parade, saying he was not concerned about the Chinese show of force in front of Putin, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, and more than two dozen other heads of state. However, by Tuesday night, he was grousing on his Truth Social website that China wasn't giving credit to the US for its support in World War Two.
Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States of America, he wrote. Conspiracies aside, Trump has a soft spot for parades and demonstrations of military might, welcoming various leaders with military displays during his tenure.
China's parade, while showcasing advanced weaponry, also added a historical narrative, trying to emphasize its role in the defeat of fascism during World War Two. Robert Wilkie, secretary of veteran's affairs during Trump's first term, mentioned the parade as part of a broader attempt to reshape historical perceptions and rewritten narratives.
With the thawing relations between China and India, partially due to Trump's tariff policies affecting both nations, a new affinity among China, Russia, and India emerges as a formidable counterbalance to US influence.
Trump's trade actions are beginning to exhibit risks, as judicial challenges loom large on many tariffs grounded on a contentious interpretation of federal law. The geopolitical landscape may be changing rapidly, shifting international allegiances in response to policies grounded in protecting American industry but potentially undermining long-standing global agreements.
China's military parade serves as a forecast of both the challenges and risks the US may face from a growing Chinese presence on the world stage, presenting a complex picture of contemporary international relations.
