A Chinese officer touches underneath the nose of a member of an honor guard at Beijing airport. (Photo by David Gray/Reuters)





A man sweeps the red carpet in front of an honor guard in Lisbon, Portugal. (Photo by Rafael Marchante/Reuters)





A member of an honor guard wipes the shoes of another as they prepare for a welcome ceremony at Beijing airport. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)





Russian servicemen stretch before a rehearsal for the annual Victory Day parade in Moscow's Red Square. (Photo by Maxim Shemetov/Reuters)





Soldiers line up outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)





A female member of the honor guard reacts as another one helps to adjust her cap ahead of an official welcoming outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)





Members of an honor guard clean their boots as they get ready for a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)





A member of honor guard adjusts his cap as he prepares for a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People on a hot day in Beijing. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)





Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Ghika, Commanding Officer of the 1st Battalion Irish Guards, inspects his men in the parade ground of their barracks in southern England. (Photo by Eddie Keogh/Reuters)





A female honor guard has lipstick applied as they prepare for an official welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)





A female member of the honor guard checks her make-up as she prepares for an official welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)





An officer of a Chinese People's Liberation Army honor guard uses a string to ensure members are standing in a straight line before a welcoming ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)





A member of the Mongolian army adjusts the uniforms of State Palace honor guards as they stand in line before a welcoming ceremony in Ulan Bator. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)





Guardsmen of the Grenadier Guards remove their capes during the Colonel's Review ceremony at Horse Guards Parade in London. (Photo by Luke MacGregor/Reuters)





An Indian paramilitary soldier adjusts the uniform of his comrade during Independence Day celebrations. (Photo by Jayanta Dey/Reuters)





A commander adjusts the cap of a soldier before a welcoming ceremony in Beijing. (Photo by Petar Kujundzic/Reuters)





A soldier of the Swiss federal army polishes the boots of his comrades before a welcoming ceremony at Zurich's-Kloten airpor. (Photo by Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters)





An officer of the Chinese People's Liberation Army uses a string to ensure that soldiers stand in a straight line before a welcoming ceremony in Beijing. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)





Chinese paramilitary police recruits attend a training session at a military base in Hefei, Anhui province. (Photo by Jianan Yu/Reuters)





An officer inspects an honor guard before an official welcoming ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. (Photo by David Gray/Reuters)





A female cadet helps her comrade fix her boots before the start of the Independence Day parade in India. (Photo by Sivaram V/Reuters)