This article originally appeared at Fort Russ

Chinese leadership knows what China can do, has done, and what it represents to the world. China apparently felt it unnecessary to 'over-project' themselves militarily, because military might is not China's primary message to the world.

"Read Russia Insider"

China has nothing to prove - it simply is. Reflecting this, today's parade was respectfully understated overall.

This didn't stop even 'progressive' Western media, like the Guardian and others, from playing their standard role as war criminals. We must recall here that the Geneva conventions prohibit media from stoking the flames of war and national enmity, which is clearly represented in the Guardian's libelous sub-heading in today's write-up on the parade.

China probably has the world's largest economy, officially number 2. This no.2 status is a consequence of both some of the skewed tools of measurement, alongside the fact that China tends to suppress its own currency as well as allowing some of its productive capacity to be idle - mostly so that it can 'grow into' it when the need arises.

China's military boasts some 2.2 million active duty personnel, with another 500,000 active reservists. Rather, we should say that they don't boast - today's parade of 12,000 soldiers represents only 0.045 percent of its force.

The message today was 'peace and development', and China's premier, Xi Jingping, took the opportunity to announce a reduction of the PLA by 300,000.

One thing that China was very careful of, in connection with this 'peace and development' message, was not to make this celebration nominally commemorating the Victory over Japanese occupation into an anti-Japanese event in any way.

The Victory over the Japanese invasion and occupation of China in the WWII period is indeed only part of the story here, but it is also one of the most delicate parts. China has a 'positive' and fraternal official position towards Japan today, and Chinese and Japanese joint projects along with bi-lateral trade have only grown in recent decades.

China's understated parade - with as much or more focus on 'the people' as on soldiers and military hardware - must have had in mind not to give Japanese 'hawks' more ammo than needed.

Contrary to western spin, and in a clear statement to Japan, Xi Jingping pledged his country would:

“never seek hegemony or expansion. It will never inflict its past suffering on any other nation”.

The primary US effort with Japan has been to push it against China. This was also US policy in the years leading up to WWII.

Indeed, today we saw a typically despicable write up in the Guardian about this event. They have 'conjured up' an anti-Japanese narrative where there was none. One would imagine that in making such a claim, they would quote some of the 'anti-Japanese' remarks by the Chinese premiere. They couldn't, because there weren't any.

The New York Times, in classic form, gave us this gem:

"Grip on power"? - They've resorted to using the 'rogue state' narrative to describe the most populous, stable, and possibly powerful nation on the planet, with the second fastest growing economies (was just surpassed by India). Astounding. And criminal.

The psychological connotation here of this discursive trap is that a 'grip on power' is in the face of unpopularity and instability, and is meant to imply that one is losing one's grip on power.

He assumed his role as president only in March of 2013, and will be followed by the next president.

But the logic and narrative of western Media, operating at an elementary school student's level of cognitive understanding (and on hopped up on Ritalin and coca-cola), reduces all societies, historical events, political processes etc., to the personalities of individuals. And their undying quest for power, naturally. Certainly this is not a case of projection (ha!).

Perhaps this fits nicely in describing Charles Taylor's Liberia, but certainly seems like a snapshot from some twisted alternative universe when describing China.

Fortunately, it increasingly matters little what New York Times or Guardian readers are led to believe. Most in the west view their own mainstream (including 'progressive', etc.) with a healthy dose of cynicism.

The failing western propaganda machine was unable to take away from China's real message today - international friendship, stability, and development.