Putin, Kim join Xi at military parade in China as Trump says they 'conspire against' US
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un joined Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Sept. 3 for a large-scale military parade marking the 80th anniversary of Japan's surrender and the end of World War II.
While no U.S. officials attended, U.S. President Donald Trump reacted on Truth Social, writing to Xi: "Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against The United States of America."
The event marked the first public appearance of Putin, Kim, and Xi together — highlighting deepening ties among the three countries and reduced isolation of both the Russian and North Korean leaders.
Putin's foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, suggested that Trump's comment about a "conspiracy" against the United States was meant as irony.
"I think (Trump) did not say without irony that supposedly 'these three' are plotting against the United States," Ushakov said. "I mean, no conspiracy — nobody was plotting anything, nobody was weaving anything, no conspiracy."
Putin and Kim then departed the parade for bilateral talks, Russian state news agency TASS reported.
As Russia faced geopolitical isolation following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Pyongyang emerged as one of Moscow's most important military allies, supporting its war effort with artillery shells, missiles, and even soldiers.
Likewise, despite officially claiming neutrality, China has been indirectly supporting Moscow's war by purchasing Russian oil and providing dual-use technology.
Addressing a crowd of more than 50,000 people at Tiananmen Square, Xi said: "Today, mankind is faced with the choice of peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, win-win or zero-sum," adding that the Chinese people "stand on the right side of history."
While Xi lauded peace and dialogue in his speech, China used the parade to show off its military might.
The event featured over 10,000 troops, more than 100 aircraft and vehicles, and the country's most advanced weaponry, like the nuclear-capable DF-61 intercontinental ballistic missiles, hypersonic missiles, drones, and laser weapons.
The parade came just days after the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, which brought together Xi, Putin, Kim, and other world leaders, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Taken together, both the military parade and the SCO summit are seemingly meant to project China's power on the global stage and Xi's vision of a new world order — especially amid rising tensions with the United States over trade and security.
While Putin attended the military parade in Beijing, Russian forces launched a large-scale drone attack targeting cities across Ukraine. Despite Xi's rhetoric about peace, China has emerged as a key ally and economic lifeline for Russia during its war against Ukraine, with Kyiv growing more vocal in accusing Beijing of directly supporting Moscow's war effort.
