Seventy year’s on from the defeat of Japan in Asia and China has held a military style anniversary parade, inviting the world’s leaders to come together but the at-odds US and European government’s leaders stayed away, also their fellow travellers such as Japan, so integral to these proceedings, but also missing were leaders from Asian neighbors like Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia, all of which were invited. With that negative stance they each lessen their real world influence and place themselves further backstage in the Asia-Pacific political and economic theatre.
The official title of the event is: “Commemoration of 70th Anniversary of Victory of Chinese People’s Resistance against Japanese Aggression and World Anti-Fascist War.”
Quoting the US political commentator Paul Craig Roberts: “It is difficult to explain the incompetence that has become the hallmark of Western governments and media. The West has boycotted China’s celebration of its World War II victory, but apparently American veterans of the Flying Tigers are attending. Here is RT’s report on China’s World War II victory celebration today.”
http://www.rt.com/news/314176-china-military-parade-wwii/
Beijing-based political analyst Zhang Lifan spoke to the South China Morning Post to say that the parade was aimed at shifting public attention from domestic dissatisfaction to international issues, and would reinforce negative public sentiment against the US and Japan. “The parade will help increase nationalist sentiment, by showing the public that China has become a real power under the leadership of the Communist Party,” he said.
Well, the Communist Party deserves credit for what it has achieved over the intervening years as it has brought China into the modern world and the oft used phrase: ‘we must move towards democracy under the guidance of socialism with Chinese characteristics,” continues valid. Can China use capitalism to defeat capitalism? Will the revolution get back on track?
Chinese president Xi Jinping has made it explicit that China desires peace, harmony, and not confrontation with any country, obliquely pointing to the U.S., and to show that good faith announced the paring down of the PLA troops by 300,000 soldiers. This is a calculated signal to the U.S. Pentagon and Barack Obama.
Now that China has shown it’s military might to the world and has got to know who-which country is with it, will the leadership move the country into an era that is less military inclined? Will it lighten up on its internal and external regional controls and demands. These are the questions only the future will show. And Xi proclaimed that the way forward is according to Marx, even before Mao and Deng. Also, can the Communist Party walk the royal road of non-violence, leaving off from its sadly violent birth pangs?
