THERE has never been any doubt about the economic and military strength of China but a massive military parade in central Beijing on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the country’s victory in World War II conveyed to the world a clear message that China was unstoppable, as its visionary leader President Xi Jinping put it.
Towering structures shaped like the Great Wall stood in Tiananmen Square, symbolizing the Chinese nation’s courage and solidarity in resisting foreign aggression and its resolve to make defence of the country invincible. Chinas huge collection of weapons rolled past the dignitaries, who were hosted by Beijing for the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and the guests were visibly impressed by the military might of the country.
In fact, Chinas superb military hardware got practical recognition in the recent Pakistan-India conflict as it performed well in the face of top-of-the-line weapons systems used by India to brow-beat Pakistan and to show its military muscles. The performance of the Chinese-supplied aircraft and missiles established Beijings reputation as a quality supplier and Wednesdays military parade showed to the world that the country has much more in its inventory enough to thwart any aggression and decide the fate of any misadventure. This weeks events in Beijing boosted the global stature of President Xi, who not only brought together important leaders in the nations capital but also showcased a glimpse of the military might of China, which must be a source of legitimate pride for its people. China’s enormous new intercontinental ballistic missile DF-5C, with a range of 20,000 kilometres, counted prominently among the tonnes of hardware on display. The missile has a range to reach each and every corner of the globe and this would surely help restore strategic balance, which is necessary to ensure peace and security of the world. Besides the ICBMs, new underwater drones and supersonic missiles counted among the latest gear on display. Beijing residents went out into the streets to catch a glimpse of a spectacular fly-past involving scores of warplanes and helicopters, some making an “80” formation. No doubt, China is rising both economically and militarily but it harbours no ill designs against any other country and instead President Xi is pursuing a widely-hailed policy of sharing progress and prosperity with the rest of the world. There are reasons to believe that the peace-loving world should not worry about the military prowess of China.
