As you know, yesterday a grand military parade was held in Beijing to mark the end of World War II. The parade was on a Chinese scale. How else? 12,000 military, 200 planes and helicopters, tanks, self-propelled artillery installations, drones, missiles!

For the sake of the parade, they closed off almost the entire center, announced a weekend, closed many shops and restaurants, and in those that did not close, sometimes they required to fill out a questionnaire when ordering. Even hospitals sent patients home for treatment! Many Chinese people on the Internet were outraged by the high costs of the parade, but the authorities explained these costs simply: "Yes, we always did that!"

Agree, a little strange explanation, given that China has not celebrated victory in a war so loudly before. In my opinion, it is obvious that this parade is not about the past, but about the future. It is not for nothing that yesterday the Chinese rolled out the new Dongfeng-21D missile, which "can destroy aircraft carriers." An application for a future role in the world order, yes.

Many countries are seriously scared by the growing Chinese power!

We, of course, have nothing to fear, with our scarecrow guarding the Russian-Chinese border.

It's funny, many viewers were surprised by the unusual blue coloring of some equipment. Some couch analysts immediately saw in this winter version of camouflage and a hint of war with Russia.

More patriotic couch military experts, on the contrary, took this as a good sign - a sign that China is ready to defend Russia if something happens!

I can also say that it seems that the main fear of the Russian organizers of our May 9 parade did not come true. I was told in confidence in one conversation that our authorities were afraid: no one came to us, but they would come to the Chinese. In fact, only the Czech Republic was represented in China from the EU countries, and the Americans were not even represented at the parade by low-level officials.

But a military parade is not only a demonstration of military power, but also the apotheosis of a social order. Instead of citizens with different interests and preferences, we have before us slender ranks of soldiers marching in a row and greeting their commander. The real embodiment of the united people!

A military parade is the fantasy of any ruler, his secret desire. "If only the people marched so constantly and greeted me!" - the leader dreams. "If only society could line up and dress alike! Then there would be no stock market crash!"

It is clear that what our authorities feel, the Chinese also feel. If Russia is trying to compensate for its complexes of modernity with a victory 70 years ago, then why shouldn't China do the same, after all?

"Stock markets are falling, warehouses of hazardous substances are exploding in Tianjin, tens of thousands of protests are recorded in the country every year, the PRC's economy is slowing down," foreign media say. "What about our contribution to the Victory? What about the biggest sacrifices? And we also know how to march harmoniously!" - the Chinese answer them.

The parade is not a demonstration, it is blindness. This is the reluctance of the rulers to see the problems of our time and accept them, and not hide behind the screen of the former splendor (even if this splendor, let's say, contrived), is simply the inability to accept society in all its diversity.

I don't like military parades. There is so much militarism in our troubled world! And what if children see the military parade? Where does it go? I propose to the State Duma to adopt a law "On the prohibition of propaganda of militarism among minors." By the way, right after the parade in China, for the first time, a film was allowed to be shown in cinemas, in which the main characters are gays. Coincidence? I do not think!

Many media outlets are hooked on the message that China will reduce its army by 300,000 people, leaving it with a measly 2 million (for comparison, the United States has 1.2 million, and Russia has 770 thousand). At the same time, China's military budget is constantly growing: last year it grew by 12%, this year it will grow by another 10%, to $ 140 billion (the United States has 577 billion, we have 65). Therefore, of course, many countries are seriously intimidated by the growing Chinese power! But we, of course, have nothing to fear. Firstly, we are friends, and secondly,

Most of our compatriots believe that the biggest and bloodiest war in the history of mankind ended on May 9, 1945. However, the Chinese - quite rightly - celebrate this event every year in September.

The date of the end of hostilities between China and Japan during the Second World War in the PRC was recognized as one of the most important public holidays relatively recently. Since 2015, when the whole world celebrated the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II, the country's leadership has declared September 3 as the Day of National Remembrance. From that moment on, the round anniversaries of the Victory Day over militaristic Japan, like earlier similar dates, began to be marked with a large military parade on the capital's Tiananmen Square and large-scale actions throughout the country.

The Chinese Victory Day is actually a day away from the official moment of the end of the First World War - the surrender of Imperial Japan, which took place on September 2, 1945, aboard the American battleship Missouri. Although China does not appear on the lists of the most important battle theaters of the Great War, its people endured severe ordeals comparable to those that went to the lot of the multinational USSR. Many modern historians begin counting the events of the First World War precisely from July 1937, when China was subjected to Japanese aggression. During the eight years of the war, between 21 and 35 million Chinese were killed.

By the way. The date of September 3, in relation to the events of the First World War, was also celebrated in the Soviet Union. Since the end of the war, this day has been declared a holiday in honor of the USSR's victory over Japan. Although May 9 is not included in the number of public holidays in China today, the "Russian" Victory Day is also solemnly celebrated on the streets and squares of many Chinese cities.

On September 3, 2015, footage from Beijing flew around the world,
where the grandiose Victory Parade in honor of the 70-year-old
anniversary of the end of World War II.

This year, as you know, turns exactly seventy
years since the capitulation of the aggressor countries in 1945.
Officially, Victory Day is the date of the second
September. However, due to the time zone difference between
Russia and China, the Chinese celebrated Victory almost
the third of September Moscow time.

People's Republic of China celebrates not only
victory of the allies against the aggressors, but also a victory
China in resistance against Japanese aggressors.

A large-scale parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the Chinese people's victory in the war of resistance with Japan, which was expected for almost six months, took place on Thursday, September 3, at Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Under the scorching sun and blue skies of Beijing, China demonstrated its new armaments.

The military parade that took place became the 14th since
\ formation of the People's Republic of China in 1949
and the first not on the occasion of the day of her education, which
celebrated annually on October 1st.

In 1960, the PRC authorities established that the military
parades will only take place every 10 years.
The last such parade took place in 2009.

A special feature of the current parade was the fact that for the first time foreign heads of state were invited to a military parade in China. The parade began with 70 volleys from artillery pieces, symbolizing the memorable date.

The holding of the parade in the past few months has become
one of the main topics followed by all the world's media.
Therefore, it is not surprising that hundreds of people were accredited for the parade.
journalists, according to the Chinese side, the number
foreign correspondents who have applied for
the coverage of the parade was about 1.5 thousand people.

The journalists began to be taken to the parade at 04.30,
so many had to spend the night at the press center,
so as not to be late for the bus because of the road cordons.
Press buses began to approach the square near
06.00, at this time a rehearsal was already underway in Tiananmen
and preparatory work was carried out. Correspondents
asked to take your seats and not leave your area
tribune. A gift awaited guests at each place: a bag
with a bottle of water, raincoat, cap and napkins.

Without the hats provided by the organizers
many would have had a very hard time. On the day of the parade, the sky is above
Beijing was absolutely cloudless and extraordinary
blue, the weather is very hot, and the sun
mercilessly fired on the audience, some of whom
I had to sit for about 6-7 hours.

Gradually, the stands began to fill up with spectators and guests, who were brought up by buses. Before the start of the parade, more than 20 harvesting machines walked across the entire area, finally washing the territory.

At 09:00, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan began to meet the high-ranking guests at the eastern gate of Tiananmen, including representatives of almost 50 states, as well as UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the parade was watched by presidents and heads of government of 23 foreign countries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and South Korean President Park Geun-hye. Among the high-ranking guests were former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe did not attend the event.

President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko arrived
to the celebrations with his son Kolya and caused a storm
delight. The President of Belarus was known here.
Or, at least, have heard.

Russian President Vladimir Putin was the last guest to be greeted by Xi Jinping. After that, the leaders headed for a joint photo session, during which the Russian president stood to the right of his Chinese counterpart.

In addition to foreign guests, the parade was attended by
and all the top leadership of the PRC, including the Premier of the State Council
Li Keqiang, Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli, and former
Presidents of the People's Republic of China Jiang Zemiya and Hu Jintao.

The parade opened with 70 cannon volleys, after which the flag of China was brought to the square. An air train with the PRC flag and the PLA banner flew over Tiananmen Square. At this time, 20 helicopters lined up the number "70" in the sky.

Xi Jinping personally hosted the parade, which was his first as head of state. The columns of servicemen, whom the Chinese leader greeted by driving around by car, stretched for kilometers along the central street of Chang'anjie.

Chinese President Xi Jinping watched the parade in company
Russian President Vladimir Putin, UN Secretary General Ban Ki
Moon, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder,
ex-prime minister of Great Britain Tony Blair. Prime Minister
In Japan, Shinzo Abe did not come to the events in China.

In total, about 12 thousand military personnel, as well as about one thousand foreign military personnel from 17 countries, took part in the parade. The walking part of the parade was completed by a company of the Guard of Honor of the Preobrazhensky Regiment. A mechanized convoy followed the Russian military.

The parade involved about 500 pieces of equipment
and 200 aircraft. Moreover, 85% of the military
technique was demonstrated for the first time.

In particular, the Dongfeng rocket was shown for the first time.
21D with open model number - the only one in the world
anti-ship ballistic missile capable of
overcome the defense systems of aircraft carrier groups, on
which is based
US naval strategy.

In addition, Dongfeng 5 and Dongfeng 31 intercontinental ballistic missiles and Yilong unmanned aerial vehicles were demonstrated on Tiananmen Square. After the ground vehicles, in the final part of the parade, early warning planes flew over the square, accompanied by a group of fighters.

Russian servicemen of the Honor Guard of the 154th separate Preobrazhensky commandant regiment of the Western Military District closed the foot part of the parade. They marched along the Tiananmen in the special dress uniform of the Ground Forces, the Navy and the Russian Air Force, and they were armed with Simonov carbines.

As the Russian soldiers passed, Central China Television showed Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in close-up on the rostrum of the Tiananmen Gate.

During his speech, the President of the PRC
Xi Jinping announced that China is planning
reduce the size of the armed forces.

“We Chinese love the world. No matter how much stronger we become, China will never seek hegemony or expansion. China will never inflict suffering on other countries, ”Xi Jinping said. According to him, the number of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA) will be reduced by 300 thousand people, so 2 million servicemen should remain in the Chinese Armed Forces.

According to the organizers, the highlight of the parade was to be a female guard of honor with machine guns at the ready. Their uniforms were caps with gold cockades, white tunics, white skirts above the knee, and black leather boots polished to a shine.

The most famous participant in the parade was a Chinese sailor, who managed to stand during training without batting an eye for 57 minutes and 24 seconds. As local media wrote, this became a world record - the previous figure of Australian Fergal Fleming was surpassed. The sailor, nicknamed the Staring King, achieved his phenomenal success with hard training - standing, unblinking, in the wind and under the scorching sun.

Chinese official propaganda used the "peaceful feat of a sailor" to illustrate what reserves can open up in a person who is ready to selflessly serve the fatherland in the implementation of the "great Chinese dream" plan announced by the President of the People's Republic of China Xi Jinping.

China lost more than 35 million people in the war with Japan, which lasted on its territory from 1937 to 1945. At the same time, Chinese officials, veterans, experts and media representatives interviewed by Kommersant admitted that Soviet troops played a decisive role in liberating the country from the Japanese Kwantung Army.

The celebrations in the Chinese capital actually became a continuation of the May celebration of the 70th anniversary of the Victory in Moscow, in which Xi Jinping took part. The main Chinese newspaper, People's Daily, expressed the opinion in an editorial that the presence of the PRC leader in Red Square "became a great political support for the President of the Russian Federation."

“The crisis in Ukraine continues, the US and EU countries have not yet lifted sanctions against Russia, and the leaders of Western countries boycotted the planned celebrations in Moscow, thereby trying to isolate Russia,” the newspaper noted. the parade signals the end of the era of Western domination ”.

Vladimir Putin paid a return visit to Beijing. According to political scientists, against the background of the problematic relations between the Russian Federation and the PRC with the West, his trip was intended to demonstrate that the two countries have a common view of the history of World War II.

Victory Parade in China 09/03/2015. Full version

The main idea of ​​the parade, according to experts, was
is to send a signal to the main opponents of the PRC:
that weak China, which did not manage to defeat
the Japanese Imperial Army is a thing of the past.