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)
Former President Donald Trump and National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster walk to the White House June 16, 2017, in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong via Getty Images)
Taliban military vehicles parade to celebrate the third anniversary of Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in Bagram, Afghanistan, on August 14, 2024. (Ahmad Sahel Arman/AFP via Getty Images)
US Vice President Kamala Harris celebrates with her family after accepting the Democratic presidential nomination on August 22, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois. (Kevin Dietsch via Getty Images)
President Xi Jinping holds a welcome ceremony for To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee and Vietnamese president, prior to their talks in Beijing, China, on August 19, 2024. (Yao Dawei/Xinhua via Getty Images)
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado holds a national flag during a protest calling for the recognition of election "victory" in Caracas, Venezuela, on August 17, 2024. (Federico Parra/AFP via Getty Images)
A vehicle of the Presidential Guard of Niger attends the first summit of the Confederation of Sahel States in Niamey, Niger, on July 6, 2024. (Boureima Hama/AFP via Getty Images)