U.S. military parade barrels through capital with tanks, troops and 21-gun salute

President Trump's long-awaited military parade unfolds in Washington, met with protests against his authoritarian actions.

The grand military parade that President Donald Trump had been wanting for years barrelled down Constitution Avenue on Saturday (June 14, 2025) with tanks, troops and a 21-gun salute, playing out against the counterpoint of protests around the country by those who decried the U.S. leader as a dictator and would-be king.

The Republican president, on his 79th birthday, sat on a special viewing stand south of the White House to watch the display of American military might, which began early and moved swiftly as light rain fell, and dark clouds shrouded the Washington Monument.

The procession with more than 6,000 soldiers and 128 Army tanks was one Mr. Trump tried to make happen in his first term after seeing such an event in Paris in 2017, but the plans never came together until this year, when the parade was added to an event recognising the Army’s 250th anniversary.

Up above, the Army’s Golden Knights parachute team appeared in the overcast sky, descending toward the reviewing stand. The team had been scheduled to jump at the end of the parade but appeared in the skies above the National Mall far earlier than planned as a light rain fell.

At times, Mr. Trump stood and saluted as troops marched past the reviewing stand.

Hours before the parade started, demonstrators turned out in streets and parks around the nation to sound off against the Republican president. They criticised Mr. Trump for using the military to respond to people protesting his deportation efforts and for the muscular military show in the U.S. capital.

In Washington, anti-war protesters unfurled signs that said “Homes not drones” not far from a display of armoured vehicles, helicopters and military-grade equipment on the National Mall set up to commemorate the Army’s birthday. Vendors outside the festival sold gear marking the military milestone. Others hawked Mr. Trump-themed merchandise.