China shows global military ambition at parade marking 70 years of Communist rule

Missile could strike U.S. withing 30 minutes; retired Army Gen. Anthony Tata reacts. China's Communist Party marked 70 years in power Tuesday with a military parade showcasing the country's global ambitions and advancements in weapons technology. Trucks carrying nuclear missiles designed to evade U.S. defenses, a supersonic attack drone and other products of a two-decade-old weapons development effort rolled through Beijing as soldiers marched past President Xi Jinping and other leaders on Tiananmen Square. Fighter jets flew over spectators who waved Chinese flags. The display highlighted Beijing's ambition for strategic influence to match its status as the second-largest global economy, even as Xi's government suppresses dissent that illustrates the tensions between a closed, one-party dictatorship and a rapidly evolving society.