China has paired high-level diplomacy with sweeping military spectacle to advance its vision of a multipolar order, using the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin and a Victory Day parade in Beijing to reinforce its role as a leader of the Global South.

The SCO gathering brought together over 30 heads of state and international organizations, including Russian president Vladimir Putin and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. President Xi Jinping used the event to frame China as the standard-bearer of a multipolar world, announcing a new Global Governance Initiative (GGI) alongside its existing development and security agendas. Beijing pointedly highlighted that Sino–Indian ties are “not subject to the influence of any third party,” a clear reference to the United States.

Days after the summit, China marked the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War with its fourth major military parade since Xi took power in 2012. Staged in Tiananmen Square, the parade emphasized both Communist Party legitimacy and the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) modernization drive. The event underscored China’s determination to achieve defence self-reliance while sending a clear message that it can and will deter its adversaries while asserting its security claims in Asia.

By combining summitry and spectacle, Beijing underscored both its diplomatic reach and military confidence at a time of heightened global tension. The absence of Western leaders made the choreography sharper still, with China seizing the opportunity to project its alternative order and to fill the space left vacant by others.