China's huge military parade to mark the World War II victory over Japan risks stirring resentment, the European Union's ambassador to Beijing said Friday, adding it was "unlikely" top EU institution leaders would attend.

The September display will commemorate the 70th anniversary of the end of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, as Beijing calls the global conflict.

But relations with Tokyo have plunged in recent years, as Beijing aggressively asserts its claims to disputed islands in the East China Sea and accuses Japan of failing to fully acknowledge wartime atrocities.

There have been attempts to improve ties between the Asian neighbours, the world's second and third-largest economies, but history still overshadows them.

"Given the situation in this region, in East Asia as a whole, which is quite different from both post-war Europe and present day Europe, we think it would be a good occasion to send a message of reconciliation," ambassador Hans Dietmar Schweisgut told journalists.

A number of European leaders have been invited to attend, he said, but so far "no decisions or very few have been taken".

"I cannot speak for others, but I think it is unlikely that top leaders from European EU institutions are going to attend," he added.

China's defence ministry has confirmed Russian troops will take part in the event on September 3, the day after the anniversary of Japanese forces formally surrendering, which has been declared a public holiday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin -- whose relations with the West have plunged over the crisis in Ukraine -- has also said he will attend.

Other leaders from "relevant countries" have been invited but Beijing has not given specific details.

Nonetheless, Japanese reports say the country's nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is unlikely to go.

The Asahi Shimbun newspaper quoted a senior government official saying in March: "There is no way the prime minister would attend the anti-Japan military parade."

The event will see soldiers marching through Tiananmen Square, where in 1989 student-led protestors demanded democratic reforms before the Communist Party sent in troops to crush the demonstrations, with hundreds killed, by some estimates more than 1,000.

China normally holds such parades -- which feature personnel from different branches of the military and displays of equipment -- only once every 10 years to mark the anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic.

Chinese officials have said the display is intended to promote peace, but the Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily said on a social media account earlier this year that the parade would demonstrate Beijing's military capabilities to Tokyo.

"China will absolutely not allow Japan to challenge the post-war order concerning China," it added.

Veterans gather as Taiwan marks Japan's WWII defeat
Hsinchu, Taiwan (AFP) July 4, 2015 - War veterans gathered Saturday for Taiwan's first military parade to mark the 70th anniversary of the defeat of Japan in World War II, as the island vies with China over the history of the conflict.

Jet fighters and attack helicopters were among aircraft that flew past in formation as President Ma Ying-jeou spoke to the thousands gathered in the northern Hsinchu county on the nationalist Kuomintang government's role in the conflict.

The crowd applauded as jeeps carrying more than 20 veterans, displaying victory signs, paraded alongside trucks carrying ground troops and missiles, as well as tanks.

"There was only one truth: the war battling Japan was mostly conducted by the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan's official title), thanks to Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek," Ma said.

"This must not be distorted and tampered. We do not want to boast about the victory, but rather we want to prevent war... Only in this way can we learn the lesson from history."

Japan invaded China in 1937 and the two countries fought a full-scale war until Japan was defeated in 1945, during which 3.2 million Kuomintang soldiers died, according to Taiwanese government figures.

The country's first parade to commemorate the defeat of Japan comes as Taiwan's ruling Kuomintang party fears Beijing is trying to give full credit for the victory to Mao Zedong's communist forces.

But the plans sparked criticism from the radical anti-China opposition Taiwan Solidarity Union, which urged the government to do more to support the military in practical terms rather than organise memorial events.

Veterans, however, expressed their pleasure at having been invited to take part.

Hsu Ming-teh, a former navy officer wearing a dark blue uniform decorated with a belatedly awarded national medal, was among more than 130 veterans at the ceremony.

"I'm really happy," he said, but added, "this would have been better if it were held 20 years ago, or half a century since the victory against Japan."

A fleet of 64 jet fighters, attack helicopters and utility aircraft flew low over the Hukou base while two newly-acquired Apache attack helicopters swooped and looped.

Japan's de facto ambassador to Taipei was absent from the military event. Sources familiar with the matter said the envoy declined to attend while claiming he had not received the invitation from the Taiwanese government.

Tokyo switched its diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1972.

The Kuomintang government fled the mainland for Taiwan after their troops were crushed by the Chinese communist forces in 1949, at the end of a civil war in China.

Since Ma of the Kuomintang came to power on the island in 2008 with the promise of beefing up trade and tourism links, China has admitted the party contributed in the fight.