Ian Langford
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto , Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un look out from Tiananmen Gate as they attend a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II at Tiananmen Square in Beijing Wednesday, September 3, 2025. Photo: Yue Yuewei / Xinhua
The Chinese military parade that had the world talking last week was more than just pageantry. It was a declaration that Chinese leader Xi Jinping sees himself in a race against time to secure his place in history.
For Xi, who has just turned 72, unification with Taiwan is not just a policy aim; it is the crown jewel that would elevate him above Mao Zedong and cement his reputation as the greatest leader in modern Chinese history.
The timing and staging of the parade underscored this urgency, a showcase of power before an audience of foreign leaders and cameras at a high-stakes anniversary event in Beijing.
Mao, the founder of the People’s Republic of China, unified the country under Communist rule, but left it poor and isolated.
Xi’s mission is to finish the job by formally ending the Chinese civil war that pitted the Communists against the Nationalists and annexing the island of Taiwan to lock in his place in the party pantheon.
But waiting is dangerous. Inside the Chinese Communist Party, loyalty is transactional and rivals constantly watch for weaknesses.
In 2012, for example, Bo Xilai, a rising star and once-close ally of Xi’s, suffered a dramatic and very public downfall. The scandal could easily have consumed Xi, but he turned it into an opportunity, using Bo’s downfall to cement his own rise.
That episode remains a cautionary tale in Beijing’s elite politics: power must never falter; momentum must never slip.
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