Overview

• China marked 80 years since Japan’s defeat with a tightly choreographed military display in Tiananmen Square, where Xi Jinping was flanked by Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un and no major Western leaders attended.
• The parade featured newly revealed, domestically produced systems such as missiles, drones and electronic warfare equipment alongside large troop formations and flyovers, according to Chinese military briefings.
• Kim arrived by armored train with senior officials and his daughter, after visiting a missile research institute to review work on a next‑generation ICBM engine, North Korean state media reported.
• Potential sidebar meetings were not confirmed, though the Kremlin said a Putin–Kim session was under consideration and South Korea’s intelligence service expects Kim to seek bilateral talks with both hosts.
• South Korea’s spy agency assesses that North Korea has deployed about 15,000 troops to Russia with roughly 2,000 killed, as Putin and Xi also deepened ties with fresh energy agreements.