Parade

Dodgers fans filled the streets of downtown Los Angeles early Monday morning, to celebrate the Dodgers becoming baseball’s first back-to-back World Series champion in 25 years.

The celebratory parade is commenced at 11 a.m., with the Dodgers traveling on top of double-decker buses through downtown with a final stop at Dodger Stadium.

The 2025 Dodgers team has been a bright spot for many Angelenos during an otherwise tumultuous year for the region, after historic firestorms devastated thousands of homes in January and then widespread immigration sweeps over the summer by the Trump administration.

(Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times)

Manager Dave Roberts holds the Commissioner’s Trophy during the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration Monday.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

Ramon Ontivros, left, and Michelle Ruiz, both from Redlands, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

From left, Mike Soto, Luis Espino, and Francisco Espino, join fans lining the streets of downtown Los Angeles.

(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)

Mia Nava, 9, waves a flag. “She’s skipping school today and her teachers know her passion.” Said her mom, Jennie Nava.

(Carlin Stiehl/For The Times)

Alex Portugal holds onto a championship belt at Dodger Stadium. Claudia Villar Lee, poses with a model of the World Series trophy around her neck.

(Kayla Bartkowsk/Los Angeles Times)

Young fans line the streets of downtown Los Angeles for the Dodgers World Championship Parade and Celebration.

The wait for the first Dodgers parade of the century: 36 years.

The wait for the second: One year and two days.

On Monday, in celebration of the Dodgers becoming baseball’s first back-to-back champion in 25 years, Los Angeles will throw another party for the Dodgers.

The Dodgers’ 2025 championship parade starts Monday at 11 a.m. and runs through downtown, followed by a rally at Dodger Stadium. The rally requires a ticket, which can be obtained starting at noon Sunday at dodgers.com/postseason.

For fans with rally tickets, parking lot gates will open at 8:30 a.m. and stadium gates at 9 a.m. The event is expected to start at about 12:15 p.m.

The parade and rally will be aired live on Channels 2, 4, 5, 7, 9 and 11 as well as SportsNet LA and AM 570, the team said.

In last year’s rally, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and Ice Cube performed next to one another, with Roberts dancing and Ice Cube singing.

At one point, future Hall of Famer Clayton Kershaw took his turn at the microphone and hollered, “Dodger for life!”

In September, Kershaw announced he would retire at the end of the season. In his only World Series appearance, he got a critical out in the Dodgers’ 18-inning victory in Game 3.

He’ll make his final Dodger Stadium appearance as a player as part of a second consecutive championship rally. He’ll be back: The Dodgers will retire his No. 22 — they retire the number of all their Hall of Famers — and he’d certainly be in line to throw ceremonial first pitches in the Dodgers’ future postseason runs.

For now, though: Three-time champion Dodger for life.

SEOUL, Oct. 11 (UPI) — North Korea showed off its new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile at a military parade, state-run media reported on Saturday, touting it as the North’s “most powerful nuclear strategic weapon.”

The parade, held on Friday night at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, was attended by foreign dignitaries including Chinese Premier Li Qiang, Vietnamese Communist Party chief To Lam and Russian ex-President Dmitry Medvedev, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.

The event marked the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea and highlighted the North’s recent diplomatic outreach efforts as well as its growing military strength.

After a fireworks show and 21-gun salute, thousands of marching troops paraded past the grandstand, followed by a procession of military hardware, according to KCNA.

“The spectators broke into the most enthusiastic cheers when the column of Hwasongpho-20 ICBMs, the most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system of the DPRK, entered the square,” the KCNA report said.

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.

Also on display were medium- and long-range strategic missiles, drone launch vehicles, Chonma-20 battle tanks, 155mm howitzers and 600mm multiple rocket launchers, KCNA said.

In his remarks, Kim praised the “ideological and spiritual perfection” of North Korea’s military and called for its continued development.

“Our army should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats approaching our range of self-defense,” he said. “It should steadily strengthen itself into elite armed forces which win victory after victory.”

Analysts had been anticipating the unveiling of the Hwasong-20 ICBM at Friday’s parade. Last month, Kim oversaw the final test of a new solid-fuel engine made with composite carbon fiber materials that he said would be used for the new ICBM.

Missiles using solid-fuel propellants have long been on Kim’s wish list of weapons, as they can be transported and launched more quickly than liquid-fuel models. North Korea has unveiled several long-range missiles that analysts believe are capable of reaching the continental United States.

It remains to be seen whether Pyongyang has the atmospheric re-entry vehicle technology to successfully deliver a nuclear payload, however.

Images released by KCNA showed Kim flanked by Chinese Premier Li and Vietnam’s To Lam, with Medvedev next to Lam. The parade comes as the isolated regime is making a renewed diplomatic push onto the international stage.

Last month, Kim traveled to Beijing to attend a military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, where he stood shoulder to shoulder with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

During that visit, Kim held his first summit with Xi in six years, as ties between the longtime allies show signs of warming after a suspected rift over Pyongyang’s growing military alignment with Moscow.

On Thursday, Kim held one-on-one talks with Vietnam’s Lam and China’s Li, considered to be the second-in-command to Xi, according to KCNA.

At an event held on the eve of the anniversary, Kim vowed to transform North Korea into a “more affluent and beautiful land” and a “socialist paradise.”

Kim Jong Un says Pyongyang will counter the buildup of US forces in the Korean Peninsula.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has pledged to develop additional military measures and allocate more strategic assets to respond to the buildup of US forces in the south, as the country prepares for a major anniversary parade.

“In direct proportion to the buildup of US forces in [South] Korea, our strategic interest in the region has also increased, and we have accordingly allocated special assets to key targets of interest,” Kim was quoted in a report published by the state media KCNA on Sunday.

Kim’s latest statement comes just days after South Korea reported that Pyongyang has accumulated large quantities of highly-enriched and weapons-grade uranium, signalling a sharp increase in the country’s stockpile of nuclear material.

“I believe our enemies should be concerned about the direction their security environment is evolving,” Kim said at a military exhibition event ahead of the parade.

North Korea “will undoubtedly develop additional military measures” to prepare to respond to the buildup of US forces, he added without elaborating further.

In recent weeks, Kim had directed top officials to strengthen the nation’s “nuclear shield and sword”, saying only a “nuclear counteraction” could safeguard his country’s security.

On Friday, October 10, Kim is set to lead a large-scale military parade to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. At this event, the country is also expected to display its latest weaponry and other military hardware.

South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted analysts as saying that Pyongyang may showcase the next-generation Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile during the parade.

It added that North Korea could also test-launch the same weaponry around the date leading to the anniversary.

Yonhap quoted South Korea’s military as saying “there are signs” that Pyongyang is preparing to welcome tens of thousands of people at the parade, which will be held on the night of October 10.

South Korea stated that it has also detected movements of vehicles and some military equipment, but did not provide further details.

Kim has maintained a hardline rhetoric towards South Korea and its close ally, the United States, despite signs of diplomatic outreach from US President Donald Trump and Seoul.

South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung, who took office in June, has also promised a more dovish approach towards Pyongyang compared with his hawkish predecessor, Yoon Suk-yeol.

North Korea has also been tightening military ties with Russia and has been supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine by sending troops and artillery.

Kim has also been deepening alignment with China and recently travelled to Beijing to attend a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, alongside Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Putin.

The voyages of the starship Enterprise will include a 5½-mile stretch in Pasadena on New Year’s Day.

The iconic “Star Trek” flagship will be prominently featured on the franchise’s 2026 Rose Parade float, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of the storied sci-fi franchise. The design for the Star Trek 60 “Space for Everybody” entry was revealed on Monday.

In addition to the USS Enterprise and its bridge — where yet-to-be-announced actors will be stationed — the float will feature an homage to Vasquez Rocks, the local landmark where “Star Trek” has filmed, as well as the franchise’s future version of San Francisco, where Starfleet is headquartered. The design also incorporates planets and transporters.

As previously announced, the float’s design is meant to reflect values that “Star Trek” champions: hope, inclusivity, exploration and unity. It was designed by artist John Ramirez and will be built by the team at Artistic Entertainment Services.

The float will also promote the upcoming Paramount+ series “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy,” which stars Holly Hunter as a starship captain and chancellor leading the academy’s first new crop of cadets in more than 100 years. The show will premiere next year.

The theme for the 2026 Rose Parade is “The Magic in Teamwork,” which is meant to celebrate “the sense of accomplishment in knowing that by working together, we can collectively achieve outcomes so much richer than we can ever experience as individuals,” according to the Tournament of Roses website.

The Rose Parade float will kick off “Star Trek’s” yearlong celebration of its 60th anniversary, which will also include additional new shows, Lego sets and even a cruise.

For the 79th year, mariachi musicians, waving Mexican flags and shouts of “Viva Mexico,” flooded Cesar Chavez Avenue in East Los Angeles on Sunday for the annual Mexican Independence Day parade and celebration.

But this year, in the face of the Trump administration’s relentless immigration crackdown — recently bolstered by the Supreme Court decision that allows federal agents to restart their controversial “roving patrols” across Southern California — there was a renewed sense of defiance, and of pride.

For many, it was even more important to show up. To stand tall.

“We’re here and we’re going to continue fighting for our rights and for others who cannot fight for themselves,” Samantha Robles, 21, said as she watched the parade roll by. “I’m happy that many people are here so they can raise their flags — just not the Mexican flag, but also the American flag, because we’re both Mexican American.”

Members of the Mexican Consulate in Los Angeles hold a Mexican flag at the East L.A. Mexican Independence Day Parade & Festival on Cesar Chavez Avenue on Sunday in Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

But the parade was also a bittersweet moment for Robles. This year, her grandmother opted to stay home, given ongoing sweeping immigration raids across the region. A new Supreme Court ruling authorized U.S. immigration agents to stop and detain anyone they might suspect is in the U.S. illegally, even if based on little more than their job at a car wash, speaking Spanish or having brown skin. Immigration rights attorneys and local leaders have denounced that as discriminatory and dangerous, and it has stoked fears in Robles, who describes herself as an East L.A. native.

“I have my brown skin, I have my Indigenous features,” Robles said. “I’m afraid not just for myself, [but] for my friends who are also from Mexico and they came here for more opportunities, for a higher education. … I’m afraid for those who are getting taken away from their families.”

The Comité Mexicano Civico Patriotico Inc., which organized Sunday’s parade and celebration, addressed those fears in a press conference on Friday, but decided to move ahead with its celebration of Mexican independence from Spain, as it has done so in September for decades.

That decision seemed to drive a sense of proud resistance on Sunday.

“Aqui estamos y no nos vamos!” (“We are here and we are not leaving!”) yelled Rosario Marín, the former mayor of Huntington Park and the parade’s madrina, or godmother.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass holds TJ’s parrot Pepe Hermon at the East L.A. Mexican Independence Day Parade & Festival on Sunday in Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

When Mayor Karen Bass rode by the crowd, she read aloud a sign from the sidewalk that said: “Trump Must Go!”

The crowd cheered.

“I was just reading the sign,” she said, with a smile on her face. But Bass reiterated her support for her Latino constituents, and her opposition to the ongoing immigration raids, calling them horrible.

“Our city stands united,” Bass told the crowd. “We are a city of immigrants. We understand that 50% of our city is Latino, and the idea that Latinos would be targeted is abhorrent.”

The Trump administration has insisted its immigration actions are merely an attempt to enforce the law, and has blasted Bass and other city leaders for stoking resistance. But many Latino leaders say the administration’s use of force is an abuse of power, stoking fears that have hurt people and the region’s economy.

Alfonso Fox Orozco wears traditional Mexican dress at the East L.A. Parade & Festival on Sunday in Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Such concerns may have affected Sunday’s parade, which seemed less attended than prior years. Anti-Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE signs, lined the street. Organizations such as the United Teachers Los Angeles yelled out “La migra no, la escuela si.” (“No immigration enforcement, yes schools!”)

Jenny Hernandez, a fifth-generation East L.A. resident, held up a homemade sign that read “Crush ICE.” The 51-year-old has been disturbed by the recent raids, many of which have targeted individuals in the workplace.

“What they’re doing is wrong,” she said. “We are not criminals. We’re Mexican, Hispanic, Latino, Chicano, whatever you want to call it…. We do not deserve this treatment.… There needs to be a change.”

La Catrina Andante sits atop a car in traditional face paint at the parade Sunday in Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

But mostly, the day emanated Latino joy, unseen in recent months. Burnt sage filled the air at one intersection, courtesy of a Danza Azteca group, while attendees — some in traditional embroidered dresses and shirts — relished the cumbia song blasting from a nearby radio.

A young girl, no more than 5 years old, belted out a call for “fresas” alongside her mother, a street vendor. A grandmother sat with her lap covered in a blanket, knitted with the colors of the Mexican flag. Politicians, teenagers, dancers and charros, or men riding dancing horses, shouted, “Viva Mexico!”

Girls dressed as vendors from Patzcuaro, Michoacan, balance on pots at the East L.A. Parade & Festival Sunday in Los Angeles.

(Carlin Stiehl/Los Angeles Times)

Other ethnic groups joined the popular celebration, including waves of Puerto Ricans, Bolivians and Salvadorans. Notable faces included Snow Tha Product and Real 92.3 FM radio host Big Boy, who at one point took the reins as an elotero vendor. Space shuttle astronaut José M. Hernández led the parade as grand marshal. , His journey from migrant farmworker to NASA astronaut was detailed in the Amazon Prime film “A Million Miles Away.”

Giselle Salgado, also an East L.A. native, said it was important to see a good turnout from her community, as well as from public officials, though she noticed a smaller crowd this year.

“We’re not afraid,” she said. “This is our tradition, we’ve always come out here. … I’m sure a lot of people are scared, but they’re still here. We’re not going to let fear and intimidation work against us.”

A very large directed energy laser weapon was among the new capabilities officially rolled out for the first time at a massive military parade in China. Called the LY-1, the laser has so far been described as primarily intended for shipboard self-defense, but was shown at today’s event in a form that also points to land-based applications.

Today’s parade in Beijing was months in the making, and new drones, missiles, and other systems had already emerged during the preparations. The event marked the 80th anniversary of what was then the Republic of China’s victory over Japan during World War II.

Despite its official unveiling today, much about the turreted LY-1 laser, including its power rating, remains unknown. It has a single very large circular aperture for its beam director. There are also multiple smaller circular apertures, some of which would be tied to electro-optical and/or infrared cameras used for target acquisition and tracking. A box-like structure on the right side of the turret (left when viewed from the front) might hold an additional sensor, such as a radar or passive radio-frequency sensor, or other components of the system.

“The LY-1 has sufficient space for power units, meaning that it could have higher power, enabling it to be capable of intercepting not only attacks from unmanned equipment, but also anti-ship missiles, with very low-cost for each interception,” according to a report today from China’s Global Times newspaper, an outlet run by the ruling Chinese Communist Party, citing an independent expert. “Shipborne laser weapons can effectively damage the optical sensors of enemy weapons and equipment.”

“Parade narrators for CGTN, China’s English-language state media outlet, said the LY-1 is capable of ‘precision destruction and consistent strike,’” Business Insider has also reported.

Laser directed energy weapons known to be in development globally typically fall into two categories: so-called dazzlers designed to blind optics, including optical seekers on incoming missiles, and higher-powered designs capable of physically damaging or destroying a target. A high-power type could also be designed to incorporate a low-power capability. The LY-1’s size and configuration, together with the descriptions above, put it firmly in the higher-powered category, and with a primary focus on protecting ships from incoming aerial threats like drones and missiles.

How close the LY-1 might be to entering operational service, and in what form, is also unknown. What looked to be a laser directed energy weapon with a configuration very similar to the LY-1 had been spotted on a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 071 amphibious warfare ship last year, as you can read more about here. Back in 2019, China’s state-run CCTV-7 television network had also broadcast imagery of a laser directed energy weapon with a similar, but more simplified design that was said to be under development for the PLAN.

Shipboard self-defense is a major focus of laser directed energy developments worldwide, including in the United States. In broad strokes, the LY-1 is similar in configuration and size to laser weapons the U.S. Navy has been working to field in growing numbers in recent years, especially the High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler (HELIOS). The system seen on the PLAN Type 071 last year also featured a retractable protective dome to help shield it from the elements when not in use. A laser weapon system that the U.S. Navy tested on the Arleigh Burke class destroyer USS Dewey in 2012 had a similar enclosure. Another laser was also notably tested on the USS Portland, a San Antonio class amphibious warfare ship, which is roughly analogous to the Type 071.

Broadly speaking, laser weapons hold the promise of largely unconstrained magazine depth, as long as there is sufficient power and cooling. While a single laser can only be focused on one point at a time, a turreted beam can also be readily redirected from one target to the next after the laser has effected its target in a satisfactory manner.

It is worth noting that lasers, in general, are sensitive to environmental factors, including smoke, clouds, rain, or other particles in the air, all which can break up a beam and reduce its effectiveness. The power of that beam already drops as it propagates through the atmosphere and gets further away from the source. When developing a practical and reliable laser weapon system that can stand up to real combat use, especially being battered at sea for months at a time and exposed to salt water spray, the delicate nature of their adaptive optics presents further challenges.

The capabilities laser weapon systems are designed to offer are in high demand for ships, especially amid ever-growing drone and missile threats. Even advanced warships with deeply-layered defensive capabilities are among the most protected but threatened objects on earth. Adding a laser layer for close-in defense is seen as highly adventurous. Shipboard applications also offer their own challenges when it comes to meeting the significant power and cooling, as well as physical space demands.

The benefits that high-power laser directed energy weapons offer, at least in principle, are also relevant in the land and air domains, and the LY-1 could also be intended for use in a ground-based configuration. At today’s parade, the laser weapons appeared in what looked to be a very purpose-built eight-wheeled road-mobile format. As a comparison, HQ-10 naval surface-to-air missile launchers, or mockups thereof, were also paraded, but in a configuration more clearly intended for display, rather than operational use.

There is precedent for adapting naval weapon systems, especially those intended for close-in defense, for use ashore. The U.S. Army’s Centurion, a ground-based version of the 20mm Vulcan cannon-armed Phalanx Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) found on various U.S. Navy and foreign warships, is a prime example. China has also previously developed versions of its own naval gun-armed CIWS systems for applications on land.

A land-based version of the LY-1 could provide an additional layer of defense against drones, cruise missiles, and even helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, depending on its real-world effective range and power rating. If the system is self-contained, it might have some capability to engage targets on the move, as well.

As noted, there are still questions about how close the LY-1 might be to entering operational service in any domain. In the United States, laser directed energy weapon development has faced repeated setbacks, especially due to power and cooling challenges, as well as making systems rugged enough for actual combat use, as you can read more about here. While the U.S. Navy has made more visible progress on this front than other branches of America’s armed forces, the service’s senior leaders have still expressed frustration with the pace of actually fielding these capabilities.

At the same time, China has clearly been making significant investments in operationalizing various tiers of laser and high-powered microwave directed energy weapons. This includes higher-end ground-based lasers designed to at least disrupt the operation of orbiting satellites. There are also smaller land-based laser weapons primarily intended for the counter-drone role, some of which were also showcased at today’s parade. Chinese firms have already succeeded in securing at least limited export sales of systems in that general category, including to Saudi Arabia and Iran, and reportedly Russia.

China showcases a counter-drone formation featuring interceptors, anti-drone swarm barrage weapons, high-energy lasers and microwave weapons intended to disable hostile aircraft during the military parade in Beijing on Sep 3. pic.twitter.com/X1SJg3mjhI

— Byron Wan (@Byron_Wan) September 3, 2025

🇨🇳PLAAF/PLA/PLARF Anti-swarm Formation

No Details of Designation Given out

“OW5-A10” Laser Mengshi
“PLB-625” 6x25mm
30mm Cannon Gun “FK-3000” CUAV Mini Dome
“OW5-A50” Laser HMV3 pic.twitter.com/iLZEXcm46Y

— David Wang (@Nickatgreat1220) September 3, 2025

A massive high-powered microwave weapon called the Hurricane 3000, which is mounted on a modified Shacman SX2400/2500-series 8×8 truck, was also on display at the event today in Beijing. That particular system had previously been showcased publicly at last year’s Zhuhai Airshow, as you can read more about here.

🔴 BREAKING: China has unveiled its ultimate anti-drone weapons 🇨🇳

It’s not a missile.
It’s not a traditional gun.

It’s OW5-A50 Laser HMV3 and “Hurricane 3000” Microwave System ⚡

One blast = dozens of drones disabled mid-air.
No ammo. No reload. Just pure energy.

Built for… pic.twitter.com/QhvVN8qpUv

— Defence Index (@Defence_Index) September 3, 2025

While more remains to be learned about the LY-1 and China’s plans for it, it is the latest reflection of the country’s push to develop and field laser and other directed energy weapons for use in multiple domains.

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TOKYO — The leaders of China, North Korea and Russia stood shoulder to shoulder Wednesday as high-tech military hardware and thousands of marching soldiers filled the streets of Beijing.

Two days earlier, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping huddled together, smiling broadly and clasping hands at a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.

The gatherings in China this week could be read as a striking, maybe even defiant, message to the United States and its allies. At the very least, they offered yet more evidence of a burgeoning shift away from a U.S.-dominated, Western-led world order, as President Trump withdraws America from many of its historic roles and roils economic relationships with tariffs.

Trump himself indicated he was the leaders’ target in a message on social media to Xi: “Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin, and (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against The United States of America.”

But China’s military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, and the earlier economic gathering, is also simply more of the self-interested, diplomatic jockeying that has marked regional power politics for decades.

Each of these leaders, in other words, is out for himself.

Xi needs cheap Russian energy and a stable border with North Korea, his nuclear-armed wildcard neighbor. Putin is hoping to escape Western sanctions and isolation over his war in Ukraine. Kim wants money, legitimacy and to one-up archrival South Korea. Modi is trying to manage his relationship with regional heavyweights Putin and Xi, at a moment when ties with Washington are troubled.

The events highlight China’s regional aspirations

China is beset with serious domestic problems — stark economic and gender inequalities, to name two — and a tense standoff with Taiwan, the self-governing island that Beijing claims as its own. But Xi has tried to position China as a leader of countries that feel disadvantaged by the post-World War II order.

“This parade showcases the ascendancy of China propelled by Trump’s inept diplomacy and President Xi’s astute statecraft,” said Jeff Kingston, a professor of Asian studies at Temple University Japan. “The Washington consensus has unraveled, and Xi is rallying support for an alternative.”

Some analysts caution against reading too much into Russia-China-North Korea ties. China remains deeply wary of growing North Korean nuclear power, and has long sought to temper its support — even agreeing at times to international sanctions — to try to influence Pyongyang’s pursuit of weapons.

“Though the Russia-North Korea tie has resumed to a military alliance, China refuses to return to the year of 1950,” when Beijing sent soldiers to support North Korea’s invasion of the South and the USSR provided crucial military aid, said Zhu Feng, dean of the School of International Relations of Nanjing University. “It is wrong to believe that China, Russia and North Korea are reinforcing bloc-building.”

Russia looks to China to help ease its isolation

For the Kremlin, Putin’s appearance in Beijing alongside major world leaders is another way to shrug off the isolation imposed by the West on Russia in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

It has allowed Putin to take to the world stage as a statesman, meeting a host of world leaders, including Modi, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. And Putin’s reception by Xi is a reminder that Russia still has major trading partners, despite Western sanctions that have cut off access to many markets.

At the same time, Russia does not want to anger Trump, who has been more receptive than his predecessor, particularly in hearing out Moscow’s terms for ending its war with Ukraine.

“I want to say that no one has been plotting anything; no one was weaving any conspiracies,” Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said about Trump’s social media message. “None of the three leaders had even thought about such a thing.”

Kim Jong Un walks a diplomatic tightrope in Beijing

The North Korean leader’s trip to Beijing will deepen new ties with Russia while also focusing on the shaky relationship with his nation’s most crucial ally, and main economic lifeline, China.

Kim has sent thousands of troops and huge supplies of military equipment to help Russian forces to repel a Ukrainian incursion on their territory.

Without specifically mentioning the Ukraine war, Kim told Putin on Wednesday that “if there’s anything I can do for you and the people of Russia, if there is more that needs to be done, I will consider it as a brotherly obligation, an obligation that we surely need to bear.”

The Institute for National Security Strategy, a think tank affiliated with South Korea’s spy agency, said in a report this week that Kim’s trip, his first appearance at a multilateral diplomatic event since taking power in 2011, is meant to strengthen ties with friendly countries ahead of any potential resumption of talks about its nuclear program with Trump. The two leaders’ nuclear diplomacy collapsed in 2019.

“Kim can also claim a diplomatic victory as North Korea has gone from unanimously sanctioned by the U.N. Security Council for its illegal nuclear and missile programs to being embraced by UNSC permanent members Russia and China,” said Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

India’s Modi is playing a nuanced game

Modi is on his first visit to China since relations between the two countries deteriorated after Chinese and Indian soldiers engaged in deadly border clashes in 2020.

But the tentative rapprochement has its limits. Praveen Donthi, a senior analyst with the International Crisis Group, said the Indian leader did not participate in Beijing’s military parade because the “distrust with China still exists.”

“India is carefully walking this tightrope between the West and the rest, especially when it comes to the U.S., Russia and China,” he said. “Because India does not believe in formal alliances, its approach has been to strengthen its relationship with the U.S., maintain it with Russia, and manage it with China.”

Even as he takes some steps toward China, the United States is also on Modi’s mind.

India and Washington were negotiating a free trade agreement when the Trump administration imposed 25% tariffs for New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil, bringing the combined tariffs to 50%.

Trade talks have since stalled and relations have significantly declined. Modi’s administration has vowed to not to yield to U.S. pressure and signaled it is willing to move closer to China and Russia.

But Donthi said India would still like to keep a window open for Washington.

“If Modi can shake hands with Xi five years after the India-China border clash, it could be far easier for him to shake hands with Trump and get back to strengthening ties, because they are natural allies,” he said.

Klug writes for the Associated Press. AP writers Kim Tong-hyung and Hyung-jin Kim in Seoul, South Korea; Ken Moritsugu in Beijing; Sheikh Saaliq in New Delhi; and Katie Marie Davies in Manchester, England, contributed to this report.

China showcased a new generation of weapons at a military parade in Bejing, including ‘robot wolves’, unmanned submarines and aircraft, and intercontinental ballistic missiles. Al Jazeera’s Alex Gatopoulos looks at how these all fit into Beijing’s push to build a world-class military.

Sept. 3 (UPI) — Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un stood shoulder-to-shoulder on Wednesday for a display of Chinese military might in Beijing, including its latest nuclear-capable missiles, laser weapons and a new stealth fighter-jet.

The massive parade marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square was the first time the three leaders had been seen together publicly.

Xi engaged in lengthy handshakes first with Kim and then moved on to Putin before the three walked side by side along a red-carpeted route to their viewing position on a rostrum in Tiananmen Square to join 50,000 guests gathered for a march-past of 10,000 troops flanked by the latest military hardware and more than 100 aircraft overflying the square.

Among the equipment on display were new hypersonic and nuclear Inter Continental Ballistic Missiles, including a new DF-5C version of the Dongfeng-5, said to be capable of reaching the United States, the DF-26D and the DF-61, as well as new AI-enabled autonomous weapons.

The military’s new J-20S twin-seater stealth fighter was given its first outing, but in a static display, and did not fly.

The 70-minute-long parade also showcased new branches of the People’s Liberation Army, including Aerospace Force, Cyberspace Force and Information Support Force.

However, Xi sought to present the growing military might on display as a force for peace with helicopters flying banners that read “Justice will prevail. Peace prevails. The people prevail,” and a speech in which he said that in an ever more dangerous world, China would always make a principled stand.

“Today, humanity is again faced with the choice of peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, win-win or zero-sum,” Xi said. China’s people, he added, “firmly stand on the right side of history”.

But at the same time, he stressed that as a great nation, China “is never intimidated by any bullies” and warned that his country was “unstoppable”.

“Strength may prevail for a time, but over the long arc of history, it is reason that wins. Justice, light, and progress will always triumph over evil, darkness, and reaction,” he said.

Only two Western leaders were present and no representatives of any of China’s wartime allies, which included the United States, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and the then-U.S. colony of the Philippines, were invited.

The conspicuous show of unity and muscle-flexing prompted a scathing response from U.S. President Donald Trump, who accused the trio of plotting against the United States and bemoaned the fact that the event ignored America’s contribution in helping defeat the Japanese army in China.

“The big question to be answered is whether or not President Xi of China will mention the massive amount of support and ‘blood’ that the United States of America gave to China in order to help it to secure its FREEDOM from a very unfriendly foreign invader. Many Americans died in China’s quest for Victory and Glory. I hope that they are rightfully Honored and Remembered for their Bravery and Sacrifice!” Trump wrote on his social media platform.

“Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States of America.”

Xi’s speech did nod to the contribution made by allies, saying China would never forget the help it received from “foreign governments and international friends,” in defeating the Japanese army, which formally surrendered to the then-nationalist government on Sept. 3, 1945.

China’s full military might was on display in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square where thousands of troops marched in parade.

China flexed its military muscle at a huge military parade in Beijing to mark 80 years since the end of World War II, displaying its latest generation of stealth fighters, tanks and ballistic missiles amid a highly choreographed cast of thousands.

The parade through Tiananmen Square on Wednesday morning was overseen by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is also the head of China’s military and the Chinese Communist Party.

After greeting foreign leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Xi moved on to welcome Chinese military veterans before taking his place at the centre of the event.

Xi watched on from the Gate of Heavenly Peace before making a speech to the 10,000 assembled members of the People’s Liberation Army, Navy and Air Force, stating that China would continue to “adhere to a path of peaceful development”.

“Humanity is again faced with a choice of peace or war, dialogue or confrontation, and win-win outcomes or zero-sum games,” Xi said, according to an official readout of his speech.

“The Chinese people will stand firmly on the right side of history and on the side of human progress, adhere to the path of peaceful development, and join hands with the rest of the world to build a community with a shared future for humanity,” he said.

Dressed in a grey Mao suit, Xi then toured Tiananmen Square, standing in a vehicle, before the parade finally commenced down Beijing’s Chang’an Avenue, a major thoroughfare in the Chinese capital.

China’s most advanced weaponry took front and centre in the parade, including clearly labelled DF-5 intercontinental missiles – capable of delivering a nuclear warhead – alongside tight formations of military personnel.

“For Xi, the point is to reinforce the impression that the [People’s Republic of China, PRC] has arrived as a great power under his leadership,” said Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore.

“Another is the array of leaders at the parade, which suggests that the PRC cannot be isolated and is unafraid of pressure and bullying, particularly from the United States,” he said.

Above the parade, the air force staged a flyover, including helicopters with banners declaring, “Justice will prevail”, “Peace will prevail”, and “The people will win”.

The U.S. Air Force’s top officer in the Pacific says a key takeaway from China’s huge military parade tomorrow will be that “we are not deterred.” Several new Chinese air combat drones and air and missile defense systems, as well as a host of other advanced capabilities, will be showcased at the event in Beijing, as TWZ has been reporting on already.

Air Force Gen. Kevin Schneider, head of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), offered his own strategic signaling on the forthcoming Chinese parade during a virtual talk hosted today by the Air & Space Forces Association’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies. Schneider was responding to a direct question from Aviation Week‘s Steve Trimble, who specifically highlighted the new air combat drones, as well as the HQ-29 high-end anti-ballistic missile system, that are among the Chinese systems set to make their official public debut tomorrow.

“Nations like China, and North Korea, and Russia, and others do these kind of events. There’s certainly a big focus on messaging,” Schneider said. “You know, messaging is certainly a factor there, but I think the takeaway for this is we are not deterred.”

“We will continue to stay ahead of the challenges. We will continue to find ways to advance our capabilities and to deal with potential adversary systems as they are developed and fielded,” he continued. “I maintain a high degree of optimism that we have been successful in doing that, and we will continue to be successful in finding ways to mitigate threats by others as they are developed, and advancing our own capabilities, to be able to break down doors, to get into anti-access area/denial areas, and to be able to operate in weapons engagement zones, something that we have done as a nation since day one.”

Earlier in the talk, Schneider had also offered a basic rubric for understanding deterrence, which he said was imparted to him by a former head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM).

“He described deterrence as a bit of a mathematical equation. It was capability times willingness times messaging. And his point was, if any of those factors are zero, then deterrence is zero. It wasn’t an addition problem. It was a multiplication problem.”

“Within that, capability is the outsized factor in deterrence,” he added. “So, finding ways that we can continue to improve our positions, our capabilities, and to be able to adapt ahead of what a potential adversary is doing, is by far the most important of those factors.”

Schneider specifically name-checked the B-21 Raider stealth bomber and the F-47 sixth-generation fighter as examples of how the Air Force is advancing its capabilities. New Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones are another centerpiece of the Air Force’s future plans, including in partnership with future crewed aircraft like the F-47 and B-21.

“By and large, it’s China that occupies the main focus of our attention,” including the “growing size and capability of the People’s Liberation Army [PLA],” Schneider acknowledged. He also highlighted “the aggressive behaviors that go along with that, and that plays out in the West Philippine Sea, against the Philippines, on an almost daily basis, as well as … in and around Taiwan, with the multi-domain pressure activities that take place with regularity.”

The remarks from the current PACAF commander are in line with other comments in recent years from senior Air Force officers about the capabilities of PLA, especially its growing fleet of J-20 stealth fighters.

“It’s [the J-20] not anything to lose a lot of sleep over,” Air Force Gen. Kenneth Wilsbach, then head of PACAF, told members of the media, including TWZ, on the sidelines of the Air & Space Force Association’s Air, Space & Cyber Conference back in 2022. “Certainly, we’re watching them closely and seeing how they felt and how they operate them.”

“Well, I’m like Gen. Wilsbach,” now-retired Air Force Gen. Charles Q. Brown, then Air Force Chief of Staff, had said while speaking separately at the same event. “[The J-20 is] not something to lose a lot of sleep over, but I’m gonna pay attention to it.”

“I don’t think that it’s a dominating aircraft at this point, compared to what we have [in terms of stealthy F-22 Raptors and F-35 Lightnings],” Wilsbach said at the 2023 Air, Space & Cyber Conference. “They’ve done some good copying… pretty much most of the technology from that airplane [the J-20] was stolen from the U.S.”

Wilsbach was most recently head of Air Combat Command (ACC) and had been expected to retire soon, but is now reportedly among the contenders to succeed Gen. David Allvin as Air Force Chief of Staff.

All this being said, China has been pushing ahead with its own slew of new and advanced airpower developments in recent years. This is underscored by the air combat drones, or mockups thereof, that will be officially shown for the first time at the parade tomorrow.

Two of the new Chinese air combat drones, seen in the picture below, notably reflect the same kind of dichotomy, broadly speaking, in terms of configuration and performance, that has been seen in the pair of designs currently being developed for the U.S. Air Force CCA program.

The GJ-11 Sharp Sword stealthy flying-wing uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV), or further iterations of that design, including ones intended for naval operations from carriers and big deck amphibious ships, will also be on display at the event. The GJ-11 represents a capability set that the Chinese are investing in heavily, but that the U.S. military continues to eschew completely, at least publicly. This is despite the United States being a leader in that arena for decades, as you can read more about in this seminal TWZ feature.

All of this reflects China’s ever-more prominent position in the uncrewed aviation space. This was further punctuated this year by the emergence of what appears to be a very large, high-altitude, long-endurance, stealthy flying wing-type drone, which TWZ was first to report on and that may now be flying.

Crewed military aviation developments have also continued apace in China. This includes the J-36 and J-XDS (also referred to as the J-50) next-generation crew combat jets that broke cover last December, followed shortly thereafter by a new jet-powered airborne early warning and control aircraft based on the Y-20 airlifter. Just last month, another new Chinese stealth tactical jet design, which may or may not be piloted, emerged. A two-seat variant of the J-20, which would be well suited to the airborne drone controller role, and the J-35, a next-generation carrier-based fighter, also look poised to enter service.

As noted earlier, the parade in Beijing tomorrow will serve as a spotlight for a host of other advanced PLA capabilities, including new ballistic and cruise missiles, air and missile defense systems, armored vehicles, and uncrewed maritime platforms. Many of these systems factor directly into the Chinese anti-access and aerial denial ‘bubbles’ that Gen. Schneider mentioned as being among the challenges the Air Force will need to stay ahead of in order to succeed in any future high-end fight in the Pacific. This is also part of the expanding and evolving threat ecosystem facing U.S. airbases and other facilities across the region.

“I think there’s a couple of takeaways for us and things that we continue to take a look at [when it comes to base defense and resilience],” Schneider also said during today’s talk. “One is detection and sensing, our ability to recognize that our attacks are inbound, or even before they’re inbound, how an enemy or a potential enemy is starting to posture their forces. So indication and warning, and those capabilities that give us indication and warnings.”

Then there is “our ability to flush, our ability to get aircraft into the air quickly, to put fuel in aircraft, to put munitions on aircraft,” he continued. “As an outcome of that, [there is] our ability to repair runways, and what it is that we need for rapid airfield damage repair capability, whether it’s pre-staging equipment or new and innovative ways of putting fixes and taking holes and turning them into usable surfaces again.”

The PACAF commander also highlighted the ability to rapidly deploy forces, something the Air Force is focused heavily on as part of its Agile Combat Employment (ACE) concepts of operations, as well as active air and missile defenses provided by other services. Only a brief mention was given to talk of more physical hardening of facilities against attacks, which remains a source of very heated debate within the Air Force and the rest of the U.S. military, as you can read more about here.

Altogether, Gen. Schneider’s comments today are certainly meant to underscore confidence, at least publicly, that the U.S. Air Force and the rest of the U.S. military remain ahead of the PLA on the capability curve. At the same time, despite the continued downplaying by American officials, there are clear signs of growing concern about more and more advanced Chinese military developments.

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Tens of thousands of people gather in Hanoi to celebrate declaration of independence from French colonial rule.

Vietnam has marked the 80th anniversary of its declaration of independence from France with a large military parade in the capital Hanoi.

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Hanoi on Tuesday in a strong display of nationalism in the Communist-run country.

Authorities showcased a wide variety of military equipment, including missiles, helicopters and fighter jets, during the celebrations at Ba Dinh Square, where revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh declared independence from colonial rule on September 2, 1945.

Officials said that nearly 16,000 soldiers joined the parade, which also included honour guards from China, Russia, Laos and Cambodia.

In a speech to mark the occasion, To Lam, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, paid tribute to those who died fighting for independence, and reiterated the governing party’s goal for Vietnam to become a “powerful, prosperous and happy nation” by 2045.

“In this sacred moment, we respectfully remember our ancestors,” Lam said.

“Our nation has overcome countless difficulties and challenges. Our country has transformed from a colony into an independent and unified nation, steadily advancing towards modernity.”

University student Vu Thi Trang said she had staked out her position to observe the celebrations two days in advance.

“Something inside just pushed me to be here,” the 19-year-old told the AFP news agency.

“I am grateful for the sacrifices of the previous generation, so that we have peace and freedom to grow up.”

As part of anniversary festivities, Vietnam last week announced it would hand out 100,000 dong ($3.80) to each of its 100 million citizens.

Vietnamese President Luong Cuong also announced that 13,920 prisoners, including 66 foreigners, would be released before the end of their jail terms.

France did not recognise Ho Chi Minh’s declaration of independence, but a disastrous military defeat at Dien Bien Phu in 1954 led to the European power’s full-scale retreat from the country, as well as from neighbouring Laos and Cambodia.

Following the division of Vietnam with the 1954 Geneva Accords, the Communist North and US-backed South fought the two-decade-long Vietnam War.

The Vietnam War ended when Communist forces captured Saigon on April 30, 1975, and the country was unified.

Beijing says 26 world leaders will attend the event in Tiananmen Square, overseen by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin will be among world leaders attending an upcoming military parade in China to mark 80 years since the end of World War II.

Kim and Putin will participate in the “Victory Day” parade in Beijing next week, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday.

It will be held in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and will feature a cast of thousands and a showcase of China’s latest military technology.

The guest list also includes Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, the ministry said.

The parade coincides with the anniversary of September 3, 1945, the day that the Empire of Japan formally surrendered to Allied Forces in Tokyo.

South Korea will be represented by Woo Won-shik, the speaker of the National Assembly, while Robert Fico, the prime minister of Slovakia, will be the only Western leader in attendance.

It is unclear if Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the parade.

Modi will be in China that same week to attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a Beijing-led security alliance, in the Chinese city of Tianjin.

Indian and Chinese relations declined sharply in 2020 over a border dispute in the Himalayas, but they have thawed recently thanks to shared economic grievances with the United States and President Donald Trump’s tariff war.

Kim and Putin are expected to take centre stage at the parade alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping.

North Korea is a treaty ally of China, and Beijing provides Pyongyang with a crucial economic lifeline in the face of international sanctions over its nuclear weapons programme.

Beijing has also come to play a similar role to Russia since Putin’s unilateral invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

China has continued to buy Russian energy exports and supply it with “dual use” technology, electronics and parts that can be used for civilian but also military purposes.

Xi and Putin signed a “no limits partnership” in the weeks leading up to the invasion of Ukraine, while North Korea and Russia have also grown closer since the start of the war, with Pyongyang sending munitions and even soldiers to resupply Russian forces in their battle against Ukraine.

Putin last visited China in 2024, while Kim last visited in 2019.

Chinese military to showcase advanced fighter planes, missile systems on 80th anniversary of end of World War II.

China will stage a massive military parade next month in the heart of Beijing to commemorate 80 years since the end of World War II, and to showcase new Chinese weaponry that will be “displayed to the outside world for the first time”, state media report.

Hundreds of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, including fighter jets and bombers as well as ground forces with the latest military equipment, will be featured in the parade, Chinese military officials said at a news conference on Wednesday.

China’s official Xinhua news agency said the military parade and “joint armament formations… will be organised in a manner reflecting their functions in real combat”, and will include air, land and sea combat groups.

“The military parade will feature new fourth-generation equipment as the core, including advanced tanks, carrier-based aircraft and fighter jets, organised into operational modules to demonstrate Chinese military’s system-based combat capability,” China’s state-affiliated Global Times media outlet reported.

“All the weaponry and equipment on display in this military parade are domestically produced active-duty main battle equipment. This event showcases a concentrated display of the new generation of weaponry and equipment of the Chinese military,” the Global Times added.

The September 3 event will be the second parade since 2015 to mark the formal surrender of Japanese forces in 1945.

Foreign military attaches and security analysts told the Reuters news agency that they were expecting China’s military to display a host of new weaponry and equipment at the parade, including military trucks fitted with devices to take out drones, new tanks and early warning aircraft to protect China’s aircraft carriers.

The United States and its allies will be closely watching the display of military might, particularly for China’s expanding arsenal of missiles, especially antiship missile systems and weapons with hypersonic capabilities.

The “Victory Day” parade, involving 45 contingents of troops, will take about 70 minutes to file past President President Xi Jinping in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. The Chinese leader will be accompanied by a number of invited foreign leaders and dignitaries, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, who also attended the last anniversary parade in 2015.

Chinese authorities have stepped up security in downtown Beijing since early August, when the first large-scale parade rehearsal was held, setting up checkpoints, diverting road traffic and shutting shopping malls and office buildings.

Paul Doyle allegedly drove his car into crowds celebrating Liverpool’s Premier League title win in May.

A British man accused of driving his vehicle into crowds celebrating Liverpool’s Premier League title win faces an additional 24 criminal charges, prosecutors have revealed at his latest court hearing.

Former British marine Paul Doyle, 53, appeared tearful as he joined the hearing on Thursday at Liverpool Crown Court via videolink from prison, when details of the new counts stemming from the May 26 incident emerged.

Merseyside Police now say 134 people were injured when Doyle allegedly drove his Ford Galaxy Titanium into crowds who were leaving Liverpool’s waterfront after a victory parade.

The 31 charges in total now filed involve 29 victims, aged between six months and 77, the court heard.

Six relate to children, including two babies – one aged six months at the time and one aged seven months – who were injured when the car hit people massed on Water Street in the city centre.

Supporters of the city’s world-famous football team had thronged its streets to celebrate the club’s record-equalling 20th English top-flight title when scenes of joy turned to horror.

Doyle, a father-of-three from the Croxteth neighbourhood in the city, was initially charged with seven offences, including dangerous driving and causing grievous bodily harm with intent.

He now faces multiple additional counts under that and other charges, including 19 for attempting to cause grievous bodily harm, three of wounding with intent, and one of affray.

Doyle, wearing a grey T-shirt, did not enter any pleas during the 20-minute hearing, which several relatives of the victims and more than 20 members of the media attended.

Judge Andrew Menary adjourned the case until September 4, when Doyle is expected to enter pleas.

Earlier this year, a provisional trial date was fixed for November 24, with the case expected to last three to four weeks.

Lioness fans tuning in to the procession following the historic win were quick to praise manager Sarina Wiegman’s ‘wholesome’ reaction to parade’s surprise musical guest when she appeared alongside him on stage

Lioness fans were quick to praise Sarina Wiegman’s ‘wholesome’ reaction to parade’s surprise musical guest during the procession following the historic win.

England fans erupted with joy across the country as the team defended their title in a penalty shootout win in the final in Basel, Switzerland, on Sunday and as celebrations really got underway on Tuesday across the capital, the lauded manager made it up on stage with her team. In the special broadcast, which was hosted by Alex Scott, singer Burna Boy made a surprise appearance and was welcomed onto stage by the TV host after being revealed to be Sarina’s favourite artist.

Alex had been chatting to Sarina when she reminded her that last time they spoke following the Euros win in 2022, she had refused to dance because it was the wrong music. This time, however, organisers had managed to Burna Boy to come to the event and give a rendition of his song For My Hand, which originally featured Ed Sheeran.

This time, however, he was joined by none other than Sarina herself and sports fans flooded social media with their reaction to the moment, even though the whole collaboration was not something they saw on the cards. One wrote: “@burnaboyand Sarina Wiegman dancing at the #Lionesses homecoming was not something I had expected to see today So wholesome!! Oluwa Burna,” and another said: “Sarina Wiegman dancing up there on that stage is just brilliant.”

One praised Sarina for knowing all the words to the 2022 hit single, and another proclaimed: “This is what you call a manager who can have fun, let her hair down and party like her team! Sarina is the one!” whilst a fifth fanatic joked that the Dutch native is ‘never leaving’ the UK.

The crowds cheered as Sarina partied along on stage, and she also explained how she had managed to ‘stay calm’ on the journey to the victory as she joked: “It was chaos. I had hoped for a little less chaos. But they didn’t keep their to promise to finish things quicker! But yeah, as we always have a plan, and we try to execute that, and the players on the pitch, we just kept having hope all the time and belief. And they just showed up when it was really necessary and urgent.”

“I think you start with talent, there’s a huge talent pool within this team, also, what we want to do is play to our strengths but I think that the bonding in this team this time…in 2022, we had great bonding but it’s made the absolute difference now, that everyone was ready to step up and support each other and it was just amazing to be a part of.”

Just two days ago, Chloe Kelly scored the winning spot-kick following two huge saves from goalkeeper Hannah Hampton, sending supporters into raptures. The King said the team had the royal family ’s “warmest appreciation and admiration” following their victory, adding: “The next task is to bring home the World Cup in 2027 if you possibly can.”

An open-top bus procession took place along The Mall, culminating with a staged ceremony at the Queen Victoria Memorial in front of Buckingham Palace starting at approximately 12:30pm. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hailed the team’s triumph, saying: “The Lionesses have once again captured the hearts of the nation. Their victory is not only a remarkable sporting achievement, but an inspiration for young people across the country.

“It stands as a testament to the determination, resilience and unity that define this outstanding team.” Despite the historic achievement, it is understood Downing Street has no plans for a bank holiday to mark the Lionesses’ triumph.

Supporters stood on tables, waved flags, threw drinks in the air and excitedly hugged each other as England claimed victory, while the Prince of Wales and Sir Keir watched on from the stands in Basel. Alessia Russo gave the Lionesses hope of retaining their Euros title with her second-half equaliser after Mariona Caldentey netted the opener for Spain in the 25th minute.

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Twelve years after a breakup that didn’t stick — and one year shy of the 20th anniversary of its biggest album — My Chemical Romance is on the road this summer playing 2006’s “The Black Parade” from beginning to end.

The tour, which stopped Saturday night at Dodger Stadium for the first of two concerts, doesn’t finally manifest the long-anticipated reunion of one of emo’s most influential bands; My Chem reconvened in 2019 and has been performing, pandemic-related delays aside, fairly consistently since then (including five nights at Inglewood’s Kia Forum in 2022 and two headlining appearances at Las Vegas’ When We Were Young festival).

Yet only now is the group visiting sold-out baseball parks — and without even the loss leader of new music to help drum up interest in its show.

“Thank you for being here tonight,” Gerard Way, My Chem’s 48-year-old frontman, told the crowd of tens of thousands at Saturday’s gig. “This is our first stadium tour, which is a wild thing to say.” To mark the occasion, he pointed out, his younger brother Mikey was playing a bass guitar inscribed with the Dodgers’ logo.

So how did this darkly witty, highly theatrical punk band reach a new peak so deep into its comeback? Certainly it’s benefiting from an overall resurgence of rock after years dominated by pop and hip-hop; My Chem’s Dodger Stadium run coincides this weekend with the return of the once-annual Warped Tour in Long Beach after a six-year dormancy.

Then again, Linkin Park — to name another rock group huge in the early 2000s — recently moved a planned Dodger Stadium date to Inglewood’s much smaller Intuit Dome, presumably as a result of lower-than-expected ticket sales.

The endurance of My Chemical Romance, which formed in New Jersey before eventually relocating to Los Angeles, feels rooted more specifically in its obsession with comic books and in Gerard Way’s frank lyrics about depression and his flexible portrayal of gender and sexuality. (“GERARD WAY TRANSED MY GENDER,” read a homemade-looking T-shirt worn Saturday by one fan.) Looking back now, it’s clear the band’s blend of drama and emotion — of world-building and bloodletting — set a crucial template for a generation or two of subsequent acts, from bands like Twenty One Pilots to rappers like the late Juice Wrld to a gloomy pop singer like Sombr, whose viral hit “Back to Friends” luxuriates in a kind of glamorous misery.

Gerard Way, from left, Mikey Way and Ray Toro perform as My Chemical Romance.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

For much of its audience, My Chem’s proudly sentimental music contains the stuff of identity — one reason thousands showed up to Dodger Stadium wearing elaborate outfits inspired by the band’s detailed iconography.

In 2006, the quadruple-platinum “Black Parade” LP arrived as a concept album about a dying cancer patient; Way and his bandmates dressed in military garb that made them look like members of Satan’s marching band. Nearly two decades later, the wardrobe remained the same as the band muscled through the album’s 14 tracks, though the narrative had transformed into a semi-coherent Trump-era satire of political authoritarianism: My Chemical Romance, in this telling a band from the fictional nation of Draag, was performing for the delectation of the country’s vain and ruthless dictator, who sat stony-faced on a throne near the pitcher’s mound flanked by a pair of soldiers.

The theater of it all was fun — important (if a bit crude), you could even say, given how young much of the band’s audience is and how carefully so many modern pop stars avoid taking political stands that could threaten to alienate some number of their fans. After “Welcome to the Black Parade,” a bearded guy playing a government apparatchik handed out Dodger Dogs to the band and to the dictator; Way waited to find out whether the dictator approved of the hot dog before he decided he liked it too.

Fans react as My Chemical Romance performs.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

Yet what really mattered was how great the songs still are: the deranged rockabilly stomp of “Teenagers,” the Eastern European oom-pah of “Mama,” the eruption of “Welcome to the Black Parade” from fist-pumping glam-rock processional to breakneck thrash-punk tantrum.

Indeed, the better part of Saturday’s show came after the complete “Black Parade” performance when My Chem — the Way brothers along with guitarists Frank Iero and Ray Toro, drummer Jarrod Alexander and keyboardist Jamie Muhoberac — reappeared sans costumes on a smaller secondary stage to “play some jams,” as Gerard Way put it, from elsewhere in the band’s catalog. (Its most recent studio album came out in 2010, though it’s since issued a smattering of archived material.)

Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance performs.

(Etienne Laurent / For The Times)

“I’m Not Okay (I Promise)” was blistering atomic pop, while “Summertime” thrummed with nervy energy; “Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)” was as delightfully snotty as its title suggests. The band reached back for what Way called his favorite My Chem song — “Vampires Will Never Hurt You,” from the group’s 2002 debut — and performed, evidently for the first time, a chugging power ballad called “War Beneath the Rain,” which Way recalled cutting in a North Hollywood studio “before the band broke up” as My Chem tried to make a record that never came out.

The group closed, as it often does, with its old hit “Helena,” a bleak yet turbo-charged meditation on what the living owe the dead, and as he belted the chorus, Way dropped to his knees in an apparent mix of exhaustion, despair, gratitude — maybe a bit of befuddlement too. He was leaving no feeling unfelt.