‘Emperor Xi’? Unprecedented military parade to salute ‘Mao Zedong of the 21st Century’

President Xi Jinping has determined to outdo Mao Zedong in terms of building up a cult of personality: he has ordered a gigantic military parade at Tiananmen Square this autumn to demonstrate his ironclad hold over the army – and most other levers of power in the country.

In Communist Chinese Party (CCP) history, military parades have only been held to mark major anniversaries of the founding of the People’s Republic on Oct. 1, 1949. The last two extravaganzas took place in October 1999 and October 2009.

China And The Biggest Territory Grab Since World War II

As with countries in the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabia, Israel is not even included on the maps — even within in-flight maps aboard middle eastern airliners.

Yesterday, the New York Times reported that China’s mapping authority, Sinomaps Press, issued a new map of the country showing 80% of the South China Sea as internal Chinese water.