China’s State Council Information Office said on Wednesday that preparations are virtually complete for a large-scale military parade in Beijing on 3 September marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two in Asia. President Xi Jinping will review troops lining Chang’an Avenue and Tiananmen Square during the roughly 70-minute event, which will be staged under a wartime command system. Major General Wu Zeke of the Central Military Commission told reporters the parade will field 45 formations of ground troops, armour columns, and aerial echelons, mobilising tens of thousands of personnel and hundreds of aircraft. All equipment on display is domestically produced and in active service, he said, and the line-up surpasses 100 models of hardware. China plans to unveil several weapons publicly for the first time, including hypersonic precision-strike missiles, fourth-generation tanks and carrier-based fighter jets, as well as unmanned, counter-unmanned, cyber- and electronic-warfare systems. The armaments will be arranged in combat-oriented joint formations designed to mirror real-world operations and showcase the People’s Liberation Army’s focus on integrated, technology-driven warfare. Officials said the parade is intended to demonstrate the PLA’s modernisation and its loyalty to the Communist Party. Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to attend, although details on foreign military participation were not disclosed.