Joining parade

On Wednesday, China's peacekeepers will take part in the grand military parade in Beijing to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory in the war against Japanese aggression and fascism.

It marks the second time Chinese peacekeepers have participated in such a grand parade. In 2019, they joined the parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

Wu Zeke, deputy director of the Office of the Leading Group for the Military Parade and a senior officer of the Joint Staff Department of the Central Military Commission, said at a briefing in August that all the participating peacekeepers had undertaken international peacekeeping missions and come from engineering and infantry units.

"This arrangement not only highlights the solemn commemoration of the victory, but also demonstrates our commitment to fulfilling international obligations and maintaining world peace," he said.

Over the past 35 years, Chinese peacekeeping forces have gradually moved toward a scientific and institutionalized path, forming principles, policies, and action guidelines with Chinese characteristics that meet international standards, Wu said.

Chinese peacekeeping forces have expanded from a single service branch to multiple military branches, transitioned from support and security tasks to comprehensive multifunctional roles, and extended their mission objectives from ceasefire monitoring to lasting peace, making significant contributions to world peace, he said.

China's military has demonstrated its steadfast support for multilateralism and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter through practical actions, according to Wu.

Zhang Junshe, a former researcher at the PLA Naval Research Academy, said that maintaining world peace is the duty of China as a major responsible country.

"At the same time, the stronger China becomes, the more public security products the Chinese military can provide to the international community," he said. "Therefore, the growth of China's military power is increasing the force for maintaining peace in the world, and is not a threat."

Since 2015, the MND's Peacekeeping Affairs Center has conducted 25 international training programs, training more than 1,600 peacekeepers from over 70 countries, ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang said in a news briefing in July.

Li Wei contributed to this story.