Chinese military personnel take part in a rehearsal ahead of a parade commemorating the eightieth anniversary of victory in World War II in Beijing on August 20, 2025. (Pedro Pardo via Getty Images)
Senior lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University, Council of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute
US Commerce Secretary Howard William Lutnick and Japanese Minister for Economic Revitalization Ryosei Akazawa shake hands on on September 4, 2025, in Washington, DC. (Getty Images)
Arleigh Burke–class guided-missile destroyer USS Chafee (DDG 90) sails in formation during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise on July 28, 2022. (DVIDS)
A formation of Dongfeng-41 nuclear missiles takes part in a military parade celebrating the seventieth anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in Beijing on October 1, 2019. (Xia Yifang via Getty Images)
Senior lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University, Council of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute
A microchip and Taiwanese flag displayed on a phone screen are seen in this multiple exposure illustration photo on April 10, 2023. (Jakub Porzycki via Getty Images)
A worker produces wear-resistant rings for export to European and American markets in a workshop on October 14, 2024, in Binzhou City, China. (CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Iran exhibits its missiles, satellite-carrying rockets, and air defense systems in Tehran, Iran, on October 17, 2024. (Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Ukrainian military holds a flag of Ukraine as they receive equipment from Lithuania on November 4, 2024, in Kyiv, Ukraine. (Ihor Kuznietsov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)