The Wall Street Journal writes, "Five Chinese navy ships are currently operating in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, Pentagon officials said Wednesday, marking the first time the U.S. military has seen them in the area. The officials have been tracking the movements in recent days of three Chinese combat ships, a replenishment vessel and an amphibious landing ship after observing them moving toward the Aleutian Islands, which are split between U.S. and Russian control. "This would be a first in the vicinity of the Aleutian Islands," one defense official said of the Chinese ships, which have been operating in international waters. "I don't think we'd characterize anything they're doing as threatening," the official said."

"Thousands of troops stood arrayed at perfect, hushed attention around Tiananmen Square. Hundreds of Communist Party elders, foreign dignitaries and diplomats watched on. It was then, on live television, that President Xi Jinping stepped forward to announce that the Chinese military, on proud display to mark 70 years since the end of World War II, would lose more than a tenth of its personnel. "War is the sword of Damocles that still hangs over mankind," Mr. Xi said from the viewing deck overlooking the square in a speech at the start of a vast military parade in central Beijing. Mr. Xi indicated that he wanted to show other countries - many of them wary of China's growing military strength - that they had nothing to fear from the procession of tanks and missiles that rumbled down Chang'an Avenue while fighter jets roared overhead," The New York Times reports.

Reuters writes, "China is building two aircraft carriers that will be the same size as its sole carrier, a 60,000-tonne refurbished Soviet-era ship, according to a new Taiwanese Defence Ministry report on the capabilities of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Little is known about China's aircraft carrier program, which is a state secret, although Chinese state media have hinted new vessels are being built. The Pentagon, in a report earlier this year, said Beijing could build multiple aircraft carriers over the next 15 years. One of the new vessels is being built in Shanghai and the other in the northeastern city of Dalian, said the Taiwanese report, which was obtained by Reuters. It gave no estimate for when construction would be finished. The Chinese Defence Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. China is on a three-day national holiday to commemorate victory over Japan in World War Two."