Chinese troops swelter through rehearsal for major military parade | AFP

Rows of neatly dressed soldiers march in unison at a training ground in a humid Beijing ahead of a massive parade that China says will see the Asian giant unveil new domestically produced military hardware. President Xi Jinping will inspect troops in the capital's Tiananmen Square at the event on September 3 to mark 80 years since the end of World War II, with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and other world leaders expected to attend.