A live broadcast of China's military parade Wednesday surprisingly caught an interesting exchange between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin—about organ transplants and prolonging human life.
The walkabout discussion took place as Putin and Xi, accompanied by North Korea's Kim Jong Un, strolled with a group of more than 20 foreign leaders towards Tiananmen Square to observe the military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the ending of World War II.
The time, broadcast by China's state television CCTV and carried by channels such as CGTN, AP, and Reuters, showed Putin's interpreter saying to Xi in Chinese: "Biotechnology is continuously developing."
Following a cut that was vague and short, he said, "…human organs can be continuously transplanted. The longer you live, the younger you become, and (you can) even achieve immortality."
Xi, who did not appear on camera, replied: "Some predict that in this century humans may live to 150 years old." Kim Jong Un seemed to smile when he glanced at the two leaders, although it was not clear whether the dialogue was being interpreted for him. Putin's initial Russian comments were muffled on the broadcast. The camera then moved to panoramic shots of Tiananmen Square before returning to the leaders as they made their way to the viewing platform.
Later, at a press conference, Putin further confirmed that he and Xi had indeed talked about the potential for greatly extending human lifespans.
Putin arrived in China on Sunday to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, which was attended by over 20 leaders of non-Western countries, including India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Putin and Xi signed more than 20 agreements covering energy and artificial intelligence among other areas, as well as paving the way for a giant new gas pipeline during the visit—although financing and pricing details were not spelled out.
North Korea's Kim Jong Un, who is infrequently seen outside the country, arrived in Beijing on Tuesday on his armored train to watch the parade. Afterwards, Kim sat down with Xi at the Diaoyutai state guesthouse for official talks.
