China’s Xi, flanked by Putin and Kim, holds military parade in defiance of West

The highly choreographed “Victory Day” spectacle comes as US President Donald Trump’s “America First” stance and trade wars have strained Washington’s long-standing alliances.

China kicked off its largest-ever military parade on Wednesday, a show of its growing firepower and geopolitical clout as President Xi Jinping seeks to cast Beijing as the custodian of a post-US international order.