The impressive military parade in China to commemorate the defeat of Japan has huge significance. It was both a warning to ‘the west’ and a plea for peace signified by the release of 80,000 doves at the end of the ceremony.

Western commentators don’t seem to get this. They don’t understand that what the east wants is peace so they can tackle the problems they have. War is a very western narrative. The narrative of the bully who always wants to be in charge.

President Trump has made uniting those countries that want peace easy. His threats have sent them looking for alternatives. The biggest alternative is China. And as the military display demonstrated, China can defend itself and its’ allies.

China has the biggest military in the world with modern weaponry – way ahead of Europe and catching up with the USA. If the synchronisation of its troops in the parade are anything to go by, then the combination of their elements in any theatre of military operations will outclass all others.

It has a fully functional 5th generation air force. It has test flown 6th generation aircraft ready to build in quantity. It has the most developed missiles in the world.

But is has much more than this. It has identified energy as critical and is building huge hydro-electric schemes. It is the biggest producer and user of renewable wind and solar power in the world. It has a modern distribution network that gets the power everywhere in China. It has universal 5G internet and is rolling out 6G systems capable of handling and transmitting vast quantities of data instantly – all crucial to developing AI technology. Where is Britain?

China and the east will rule the world but not like the British and the US Empire ruled the world. They won’t use military might. They will rule by being indispensable. That’s why so much of the rest of the world supports China and the emerging BRICS alliance. That’s why every child in China learns English – the language of the dying Empire.

We see China as a threat. The TV screens that we look at are almost all made in China – but we don’t seem to know anything about the place that makes them.

Here is a confident country. They don’t want war – but they know that western imperialism must be confronted and so they have built a formidable military to defend itself. Nobody in the UK MoD or in the Pentagon with any brain will think of taking it on.

So, watching the military parade made me feel a good deal safer.

As the military catastrophe in Ukraine winds down there will be a reckoning and the ruin of many political careers. The biggest victory will be the realisation that the era of western domination is over. Don’t fight it: embrace it. Embrace China. Embrace peace.

You won’t have to learn Mandarin – you will soon have mobile phones that translate every language in the world. They already have.