BEIJING: China held a parade of its armed forces Sunday to mark the 90th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in a display of military might.
Since coming to power in 2012, President Xi Jinping has led efforts to modernize the PLA — still the world’s largest standing military — and to consolidate the ruling Communist Party’s control over the armed forces.
At the expansive Zhurihe training base in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous region, Xi, who has also trumpeted building a stronger, combat-ready army, appeared wearing a camouflage military suit.
He stood inside an open-top field jeep that drove past lines of troops for his inspection.
“Comrades, you have worked hard,” he said, to which the troops responded: “We are serving the people!“
China said in March it would raise its defense spending by around seven percent this year, the slowest annual percentage increase since 1991.
Beijing is engaged in a decades-long build-up and modernization of its once-backward armed forces, as it seeks military clout commensurate with its economic might and increasingly asserts its disputed territorial claims in Asian waters.
The PLA, originally called the Chinese Workers’ and Peasants’ Red Army, was founded in 1927 when Communist soldiers seized the southern Jiangxi provincial town of Nanchang from Nationalist Party (“Kuomintang“) armies in what is known today as the Nanchang uprising.
China military parade marks 90th anniversary of PLA
China military parade marks 90th anniversary of PLA
Indonesia’s new state mosque to hold first Eid prayers this year
- Mosque is located in Nusantara Capital City on Borneo island, a $32bn project set for 2045 completion
- Famous sculptor Nyoman Nuarta designed mosque, other government structures in new capital
JAKARTA: The state mosque in Indonesia’s planned new capital city, Nusantara, will hold its inaugural Eid Al-Fitr prayer this year, as the $62 million facility opens for its first run of Ramadan programs.
The Indonesian government has plans to relocate the capital to Borneo island to replace the overcrowded and sinking Jakarta on Java island, with the $32 billion megaproject scheduled for completion in 2045.
With a capacity of about 60,000 people, the mosque in East Kalimantan opened to the public last month, at the beginning of Ramadan.
“This mosque symbolizes that we are building the Nusantara Capital City with careful attention to spiritual, social and environmental aspects,” Troy Pantouw, spokesperson for the Nusantara Capital City Authority — the agency overseeing the new capital city — told Arab News on Saturday.
“We will hold Eid Al-Fitr prayers here and we are hoping that it would mark a historic momentum of unity here at Nusantara Capital City.”
Locally known as Masjid Negara, construction of the state mosque began in 2024. Its design was spearheaded by Balinese sculptor Nyoman Nuarta at the request of former President Joko Widodo.
Nuarta is one of Indonesia’s most famous visual artists and creator of the country’s tallest statue, Garuda Wisnu Kencana, located in Bali.
The 72-year-old is also the designer behind other main structures in Nusantara, including the new state palace.
This Ramadan marked many firsts for Masjid Negara, including its first taraweeh on Feb. 18, which was attended by thousands of worshippers in East Kalimantan.
In the same complex where the state mosque is located, the government has plans to build Christian churches, and Buddhist, Hindu and Confucian temples.
Indonesia, home to the world’s largest population of Muslims, officially recognizes Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism as religions.
“A church is now being built in the complex, and in the future there will also be houses of worship belonging to other religions. This reflects Nusantara’s values of harmony and respect,” Pantouw said.
“From the start, this area was designed to represent inter-religious harmony. We want the Nusantara Capital City to stand as a concrete example of how physical developments can be parallel to efforts to build tolerance in society.”
