Politics
China’s Xi shows he’s ‘totally in charge’
- China seizing on anti-Trump sentiment in foreign affairs blitz.
- Xi projects healthy image at parade, meetings, Tibet trip.
- Parade shifts domestic narrative from economic concerns.
When Chinese leader Xi Jinping organised his first parade to mark the anniversary of the end of World War Two, in 2015, he placed his two predecessors by his side in a show of respect and continuity of leadership.
Ten years on and having eliminated domestic opposition as he serves an unprecedented third term as president, Xi was flanked on Wednesday at the 80th anniversary parade by Russia’s Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
Chinese Communist Party leaders were interspersed among overseas guests.
The parade followed Xi’s high-profile summit with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a weekend meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Tianjin, and the Chinese leader’s rare visit to Tibet last month.
This display of diplomatic clout, stamina and geopolitical ambition has helped quell concerns among some China observers about the 72-year-old president’s vitality, linked to sporadic absences and — so far unknown — succession plans. It has also helped divert domestic attention from slowing growth, experts say.
Longevity was on the leaders’ minds as they walked up to the rostrum at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square — Xi and Putin were caught in a hot mic moment discussing organ transplants and the possibility that humans could live to 150 years old.
“This week of triumphant diplomacy for Xi shows that he remains totally in charge of the elite politics of the Communist Party,” said Neil Thomas of the Asia Society, a New York-based think tank. Unable to get the same legitimacy from economic growth as his predecessors, Xi has turned toward nationalism “to try and make up for it”, Thomas said.
“It’s a way to divert attention from economic challenges and to make his citizens proud to be Chinese, even if it’s harder to feel that from the day-to-day experiences of unemployment, falling house prices and stagnant wages.”
Xi underscored his elder statesman image with fashion choices: a grey suit in the style of those worn by Mao Zedong, matching his greying hair, in contrast to the black suits of his counterparts and his own black attire from a decade earlier.
His number two, Premier Li Qiang, whose role has diminished at home, was charged with relatively minor meetings with leaders of Malaysia and Uzbekistan. High-profile engagements with Kim, Modi, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and several others fell to Cai Qi, who heads the party’s Central Secretariat, responsible for its sprawling administration.
In response to a Reuters request for comment, China’s foreign ministry referred to news conference transcripts related to the recent diplomatic events, showcasing China’s partnerships with developing nations and positioning Beijing as committed to peaceful development and international cooperation.
Many countries that sent their leaders to China in the past week have been hit by US President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs this year, including India, which remains a significant buyer of Russian oil, hit by sanctions over Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
In one of the most memorable moments in the flurry of diplomatic encounters, Modi and Putin walked over for a chat with Xi while holding hands, underscoring personal tensions between Trump and Modi, as well as Washington’s failure to draw historically non-aligned India in to counter Russia and China.
“Ultimately, one of the biggest driving factors of the SCO show of solidarity has been US policy,” said Even Pay, a director at strategic advisory firm Trivium China.
Trump, who called the military parade “beautiful” and “very, very impressive”, made a barbed post on social media saying China was working with Putin and Kim to “conspire against The United States of America”.
The Kremlin responded that they were not conspiring and suggested Trump’s remarks were ironic.
Hit by Trump, welcomed by Xi
Analysts say Xi’s whirlwind of activity underscores China’s ambition in presenting itself as a reliable partner to developing nations on the global stage, offering advantages like investment opportunities and even a new development bank — a major step forward for the SCO, which has expanded markedly over past decades to also include Pakistan, India and Iran.
“China’s message as a more reliable, stable alternative to the United States is resonating with large swathes of the world, particularly across Asia, which sees the United States as an increasingly belligerent force in world affairs,” said Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of the China-Global South Project, a research agency.
“A lot of developing countries and middle-power states may still be a bit ambivalent about what China’s proposing with its new governance and development initiatives, but at least what China is talking about is forward-looking, which is crucial for economies with large populations of young people looking for better employment opportunities,” Olander said.
Xi faces considerable challenges in managing this large and often fractious coalition as he eyes a potential fourth term of office in 2027 to further cement his legacy as the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao.
Entrenched Chinese foreign policy positions, including territorial disputes and industrial subsidies that have flooded foreign markets with cheap exports, will likely remain friction points, experts say, while India’s deep distrust of China will not dissipate because of one brief meeting.
“It’s not necessarily a big-picture shift towards a more China-led international order,” said the Asia Society’s Thomas.
DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has introduced a new federal law aimed at protecting children from online predators, data misuse and harmful digital practices, signalling a tougher global approach to child safety in the digital age.
The legislation seeks to prevent strangers from anywhere in the world from accessing, tracking or interacting with children online, particularly through the collection and use of personal data such as a child’s interests, online behaviour and abilities.
Under the decree-law, digital platforms are prohibited from collecting, processing or sharing the personal data of children under the age of 13, except in limited cases such as educational or health-related services. Children are also barred from creating accounts or accessing online games and digital activities that involve gambling or betting with money.
The law applies to digital platforms and internet service providers operating in the UAE or targeting users in the country, including social media, messaging apps, online gaming platforms, streaming services, search engines and e-commerce websites.
It requires platforms to introduce default privacy settings, age-verification systems, content filtering and age-rating tools, while internet service providers must activate content controls and ensure parental consent for children’s internet use.
A Child Digital Safety Council, chaired by the Minister of Family, has been established to coordinate policy, legislation and awareness campaigns on emerging digital risks.
The decree forms part of the UAE’s broader social policy agenda, following the country’s declaration of 2026 as the Year of the Family, reflecting a wider push to strengthen family and child protection frameworks in an increasingly digital world.
- Ukraine seeks deals to prevent any further Russian aggression.
- Peace deal, security guarantees draft “almost” at 90%: Zelenskiy.
- Zelenskiy hints raising territorial, nuclear plants issues during meeting.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will discuss territorial issues, the main stumbling block in talks to end the war, with US President Donald Trump in Florida on Sunday, as a 20-point peace framework and a security guarantees deal near completion.
Announcing the meeting, Zelenskiy said that “a lot can be decided before the New Year,” as Washington continues to drive efforts to end Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine, Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War Two.
“As for the sensitive issues: we will discuss both Donbas and the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant. We will certainly discuss other issues as well,” he told reporters in a WhatsApp chat.
Russia wants Ukraine to withdraw from the parts of the eastern Donetsk region that its troops have failed to occupy during almost four years of war, as it seeks full control of the Donbas, comprising the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Kyiv wants fighting to be halted at current battle lines.
The US, seeking a compromise, proposed a free economic zone if Ukraine leaves the area. It remained unclear how that zone would function in practical terms.
Territorial issues remain a hurdle to negotiations moving forward. Any compromises on territory should be decided by the Ukrainian people in a potential referendum, Zelenskiy said.
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s biggest, is located on the front line and controlled by Russian forces.
Leaders to refine details in US meeting
Zelenskiy added his meeting with Trump aimed to “refine things” in the drafts and discuss potential deals on Ukraine’s economy.
He said he was not ready to say if any deal would be signed during his visit, but Ukraine was open to it.
A security guarantees agreement between Ukraine and the US was “almost ready” and the 20-point plan draft was at 90% completion, Zelenskiy added.
Wary of failed guarantees from allies in the past, Ukraine is seeking robust and legally-binding deals to prevent any further Russian aggression.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump, who has at times expressed frustration with the slow pace of progress in the negotiations, previously suggested that he would meet with Zelenskiy if he felt that a major diplomatic advance was possible.
European leaders might join the talks online, according to Zelenskiy. On Friday, he discussed “significant progress” in peace efforts with Finland’s President Alexander Stubb.
Russian demands
It was not clear which peace plan proposals Moscow would be willing to accept.
Putin’s foreign policy aide, Yuri Ushakov, spoke with members of the Trump administration after Moscow received US proposals about a possible peace deal, the Kremlin said on Friday.
When asked how Moscow viewed the documents, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he did not want to comment as Russia felt making remarks in public could undermine the negotiations.
Russia’s Kommersant newspaper reported that Putin told some of Russia’s top businessmen that he might be open to swapping some territory controlled by Russian forces elsewhere in Ukraine, but that in exchange he wanted the whole of the Donbas.
Even as the talks proceeded, Russia continued hammering Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and stepped up attacks on the southern region of Odesa, the site of Ukraine’s main seaports. On Friday, a Russian attack on the northeastern city of Kharkiv killed two.
Zelenskiy said he planned to raise the issue of placing additional pressure on Russia with Trump.
- Syrian interior ministry says 21 others were wounded in explosion
- Local official says blast took place during Friday noon prayers
- Black smoke covered part of mosque, with carpets scattered nearby.
A deadly explosion hit a mosque in a predominantly Alawite area of Syria’s Homs on Friday, said authorities who reported at least six people killed.
“A terrorist explosion targeted the Ali Bin Abi Talib Mosque during Friday prayers in Al-Khadri Street in the Wadi al-Dahab neighbourhood of Homs,” the interior ministry said in a statement, adding that six people were killed and 21 others wounded.
Homs was the scene of heavy sectarian violence during Syria’s civil war.
Syria’s state news agency Sana, which also reported the blast, said its cause and nature were being investigated.
According to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor, it was not immediately clear whether the blast “was caused by a suicide attack or an explosive device”.
A local security source in Homs told AFP on condition of anonymity that the explosion may have been caused by “an explosive device placed inside the mosque”.
A resident of the area, requesting anonymity out of fear for his safety, told AFP people “heard a loud explosion, followed by chaos and panic in the neighbourhood”.
“No one dares to leave their house, and we are hearing ambulance sirens,” he added.
Sana published photos from inside the mosque, one of which showed a hole in a wall.
Black smoke covered part of the mosque, with carpets and books scattered nearby.
Since Assad’s ouster in 2024, the Observatory and ordinary Syrians in Homs have reported kidnappings and killings targeting members of the minority community.
Syria’s coastal areas saw the massacre of Alawite civilians in March, with authorities accusing armed Assad supporters of sparking the violence by attacking security forces.
A national commission of inquiry said at least 1,426 members of the minority community were killed at the time, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor put the toll at more than 1,700.
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