China’s new missiles on parade: showpieces or showstoppers?

For China’s People’s Liberation Army, massive parades like the recent celebration of the 80th anniversary of victory in World War II are more than propaganda set pieces. Military leaders use them to show their Party superiors that the force is progressing towards its modernization goals, including being ready to fight jointly and to defeat any potential adversary—particularly “the strong adversary,” i.e., the United States. And as PLA texts attest, parades are