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Türkiye marked a diplomatic milestone Wednesday by sending its first ministerial-level delegation to China's military parade, as Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar witnessed an unprecedented gathering of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russia's Vladimir Putin and North Korea's Kim Jong Un.
The Turkish ministers watched from the protocol tribune alongside Türkiye's Beijing Ambassador Selcuk Unal as China showcased its largest-ever military display marking 80 years since Japan's defeat in World War II.
Türkiye's high-level participation comes as Ankara seeks to balance its NATO membership with expanding diplomatic and economic ties across Asia, joining nearly 30 world leaders at the historic event in Tiananmen Square.
Chinese President Xi Jinping used the massive parade to warn that humanity faces a choice between peace and war, addressing more than 50,000 spectators while flanked by leaders largely shunned by the West.
"Today, mankind is faced with the choice of peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, win-win or zero-sum," Xi said.
"The Chinese people firmly stand on the right side of history," he noted.
The event marked the first time Xi, Putin and Kim appeared together in public, with the North Korean leader seated between the Chinese and Russian presidents in the viewing gallery.
For Kim Jong Un, this represented his first participation in a multilateral international diplomatic event since assuming North Korea's leadership in 2011.
His 12-year-old daughter Kim Ju Ae, considered by South Korean intelligence as his likely successor, accompanied the delegation, though she was not seen at the parade itself.
The North Korean leader's grandfather, Kim Il-Sung, had last attended a Chinese military parade in 1959, making this appearance after 66 years particularly significant.
Following the parade, Putin met bilaterally with Kim at China's State Guesthouse, where he thanked North Korean forces for their participation in the Ukraine conflict.
"Your special military forces, in accordance with our new agreement, participated in the liberation of the Kursk region," Putin told Kim.
"I want to note that your soldiers fought bravely and heroically. We will never forget the sacrifices made by your armed forces and soldiers' families," he added.
Kim responded: "If there is anything we can do to help Russia, we will definitely do it and consider it our brotherly duty. We will do everything to help Russia."
The 70-minute parade featured China's complete nuclear triad for the first time, displaying weapons deployable from land, sea and air.
New systems included:
Xi inspected the troops from an open-top limousine before helicopters trailing large banners and fighter jets flew in formation. The event concluded with the release of 80,000 "peace" birds.
The parade drew leaders from Iran, Pakistan, Mongolia, Myanmar, Slovakia, Serbia, Uzbekistan and Belarus. Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto made a surprise appearance.
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