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)
Fighters of the UAV unit of the Striletskyi Special Police Battalion of the Zaporizhzhia Regional Police Department in Ukraine on May 23, 2025. (Dmytro Smolienko via Getty Images)
A soldier of the artillery crew of the Rifle Battalion special unit of the Main Directorate of the National Police of Ukraine in the Zaporizhzhia region on May 23, 2025 (Dmytro Smolienko via Getty Images)
Civilians and veterans of the Russian-Ukrainian war participate in a training game led by experienced servicemen of the 3rd Assault Brigade in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 10, 2025. (Getty Images)
Ukraine’s top negotiator and Defense Minister Rustem Umerov looks on as Ukraine Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya speaks to journalists after a meeting with the Russian delegates in Istanbul on May 16, 2025. (Getty Images)