China’s military parade in Beijing today produced an unexpected subplot when a live broadcast microphone picked up a brief exchange between Chinese leader, Xi Jinping and Russia’s Vladimir Putin about biotechnology, organ transplants, and extreme longevity.
In the clip—captured on international live feeds as the two leaders walked to their viewing platform—Putin’s remarks were relayed through an interpreter, who can be heard saying that advances in biotechnology could allow human organs to be “continuously transplanted,” making people “younger and younger,” and even raising the prospect of “immortality.”
Xi then responds that some predict people “may live to 150 years old” this century.
Putin’s own voice is not clearly audible in the footage; the comments are heard via interpreters on pool video feeds from the event.
Multiple international outlets carried the exchange after it aired on the parade livestreams, noting both leaders’ ages (72) and the setting: a high-profile display of Chinese military hardware in Tiananmen Square attended by Xi, Putin, and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.
Reports stressed that the remarks were caught incidentally by microphones and that full context for the conversation is unknown.
The parade itself showcased China’s latest missiles, drones, and other systems, part of a broader message of national power and closer alignment among Beijing, Moscow, and Pyongyang—visuals that dominated the day even before the hot-mic moment spread online.
The words attributed to Putin are heard through a Russian-Mandarin interpreter on the pool audio; Putin’s Russian is largely inaudible in the viral cut.
Xi’s reply about the possibility of living to 150 is audible in Chinese on the feed.
None of the outlets reporting the exchange suggested the leaders were outlining policy; rather, it appears to have been a passing conversation picked up by broadcast mics.
*Editor’s Note: Several reports describe “organ transplants” in the context of biotechnology and longevity. They do not reference or substantiate claims about “organ harvesting.” Where intent and fuller context are unclear, the above account relies on audio captured in pool feeds and corroborated by multiple reputable publications.
