Tokyo (AP) – China, North Korea and Russia leaders stood shoulder to shoulder on Wednesday as high-tech military hardware and thousands of marching soldiers Filled the city of Beijing.
Two days ago, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin And Chinese President Xi Jinping leaned together, smiling broadly, holding hands at the meeting Shanghai Cooperative Organization.
This week’s gathering in China can be read as an impressive, perhaps rebellious message to the United States and its allies. At the very least, they provided even more evidence of a burgeoning shift from the US-dominated Western-led world order, as President Donald Trump withdraws America from many of historic roles and roils economic ties with tariffs.
Trump himself has shown that he is the target of the leadership of social media messaging to XI. Kim Jong-unso that you conspire against the United States. ”
However, China’s military parade Celebrating the 80th anniversary The end and early economic gatherings of World War II are merely of self-interested diplomatic jockeys who have been marking regional power politics for decades.
In other words, each of these leaders is out for himself.
XI needs cheap Russian energy and a stable border with North Korea, his nuclear-armed wildcard neighbour. Putin hopes to escape Western sanctions and isolation for his war in Ukraine. Kim wants money, legitimacy, and money from the Archbishop of Korea. Modi is trying to manage the relationship between local heavyweight Putin and Xi nearby at a time when his connection with Washington is in trouble.
Performers will take part in a gala performance entitled “Justice Will” at the Beijing tournament on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, entitled “Justice Will” to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Japan’s World War II surrender.
The event highlights the aspirations of China’s regional
China is troubled by serious domestic problems – two names, with economic and gender inequality A nervous standoff With Taiwan, the autonomous island that Beijing claims itself. However, XI tried to position China as the leader of the country that felt disadvantaged by its post-World War II orders.
“The parade shows China’s dominance driven by Trump’s incompetent diplomacy and President Xi Jinping’s inspiring three-dimensional learning,” said Jeff Kingston, professor of Asian Studies at Temple University. “The Washington consensus is unraveling and XI is gaining support for alternatives.”
Some analysts warn against reading too much about the Russian-China Korean ties. China is deeply wary of North Korea’s nuclear power growth and has long sought to soften its support in order to influence Pyongyang’s pursuit of weapons.
“The South Korean ties in northern Russia were reopened to military alliances, but China refused to return to 1950,” said Beijing, sending soldiers to support North Korea’s invasions in the southern part of North Korea, and the Soviet Union provided important military aid. “It’s wrong to believe that China, Russia and North Korea are strengthening their bloc construction.”
In this photo, released by Xinhua News Agency, China’s President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, right of the Centre, ahead of the ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Japan’s abandonment in the World War, before a walk to Tianman Rostrum, China’s Moosing, September 2025, September 2025, AP)
Russia is turning to China to help ease isolation
For the Kremlin, the arrival of Putin in Beijing along with major world leaders is another way to shrug isolation. It will be imposed on the west It was in Russia after a serious invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Putin has allowed him to take the world stage as a politician and has met many world leaders, including Modi, Turkish President Recept Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Masuud Pezeshkian. And Putin’s reception by XI reminds us that despite Western sanctions that blocked access to many markets, Russia still has major trading partners.
At the same time, Russia doesn’t want to anger Trump. Ask the conditions of Moscow To end the war with Ukraine.
“During the last four days, no one has expressed any negative judgment about the current US administration during all sorts of negotiations, both formal and informal circumstances,” Putin told reporters.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Second Right, and North Korean leader Kim Jong Gesture will leave the reception on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, following a military parade to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Beijing, China.
Alexander Gabwev, director of the Carnegie Russian Eurasia Centre, noted that relations with China are important to Russia.
“Russia is a major beneficiary of China’s main ability to provide double use and all technology to avoid sanctions and maintain military machinery. China has become a major source of Russia’s export revenues that fill Putin’s war chest,” Gabuyev said. “For China, obviously, Russia’s war in Ukraine provides a distraction to the United States.”
UN Kim Jong is walking a diplomatic tightrope in Beijing
North Korean leader’s trip to Beijing is deepening New connections with Russia It also focuses on his country’s most important allies, as well as the unstable relationship with China’s major economic lifelines.
Kim sent thousands of troops and huge supplies to help Russian troops repel them Ukraine’s invasion in their territory.
Without making any specific mention of the Ukrainian War, Kim told Putin on Wednesday.
The National Security Strategy Institute, a think tank belonging to South Korea’s spy agency, said in a report this week that his first appearance at a multilateral diplomatic event since he came to power in 2011 was intended to strengthen ties with friendly countries ahead of the potential reopening of the nuclear programme with Trump. The nuclear diplomacy of the two leaders collapsed in 2019.
“Kim can also assert a diplomatic victory as North Korea was unanimously approved by the UN Security Council for its illegal nuclear and missile programmes, and was accepted by permanent UNSC members Russia and China.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin, from left, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping will speak ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Agency (SCO) summit at the Ming Jiang Conference and Exhibition Centre held in Tianjin, China on Monday, September 1, 2025.
Indian Modi plays subtle games
Modi is on his first visit China ties between the two countries deteriorated after Chinese and Indian soldiers were fatally engaged. Border Clash 2020.
However, there are limits to provisional settlements. Praveen Donthi, a senior analyst at the International Crisis Group, said Indian leaders did not participate in Beijing’s military parade because “there is still unbearable for China.”
“India is carefully walking this tightrope between the West and the rest, especially with regard to the US, Russia and China,” he said. “Because India does not believe in a formal alliance, its approach was to strengthen relations with the US, maintain it with Russia and manage it with China.”
Despite his actions towards China, the US is also in Modi’s mind.
India and Washington were negotiating a free trade agreement when the Trump administration imposed a 25% tariff on the purchase of Russian oil in New Delhi. To bring the combined tariffs to 50%.
Since then, trade talks have stagnated and relations have declined significantly. Modi’s administration has shown that it is willing to not succumb to US pressure and is willing to approach China and Russia.
But Donsi said India still wants to keep Washington’s windows open.
“If Modi can shake hands on XI five years after the India-China border collision, it could be much easier for him to shake hands with Trump and return to a reinforced relationship as they are natural ally,” he said.
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Associated Press authors of Kim Tong-hyun and Hyun Jin Kim from Seoul, Korea. Ken Moritug of Beijing. Sheikh Sarik from New Delhi. Katie Marie Davis of Manchester, England. London’s Joanna Kozrowska contributed.
