China's state broadcaster CCTV, which livestreamed the event to global media outlets, including The Associated Press and Reuters news agencies, reported that its coverage drew 1.9 billion views online and more than 400 million on television. As Putin and Xi approached Tiananmen Square's rostrum, Putin's interpreter was heard in Chinese saying: Biotechnology is continuously developing. Human organs can be continuously transplanted. The longer you live, the younger you become, and [you can] even achieve immortality. Xi, who was not on camera, responded: Some predict that in this century humans may live to 150 years old.
Xi inspects the troops during the military parade, which features a "new generation" of military weapons, Chinese officials say. Photo: Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty ImagesPeople sing behind a military band before the military parade starts. Photo: Pedro Pardo/AFP via Getty ImagesSoldiers rehearse at Tiananmen Square. Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesAttendees wave flags in the stands as songs play in the background ahead of the military parade.
The two leaders' meeting comes the day before a military parade marking Japan's surrender in World War II. Chinese President Xi Jinping has welcomed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as an old friend while the latter said their countries' ties were at an unprecedented level, as the two began a series of meetings in Beijing seen as sending a message of defiance and strength to Western powers.
Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un are among the world leaders who will attend a military parade with President Xi Jinping in Beijing next week, in a show of collective defiance amid western pressure. No western leaders will be among the 26 foreign heads of state and government attending the parade next week with the exception of Robert Fico, prime minister of Slovakia, a member of the European Union according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
The rare military parade, meant to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the US Army, unfolded simultaneously with widespread protests against President Trump, highlighting the country's political divides.
Donald Trump's military parade this weekend will bring thousands of troops out to march, while dozens of tanks and armored personnel carriers roll down the streets and fighter jets hum overhead.
Folks I have got some great news. We're going to have some terrible weather on the East Coast on Saturday. And that means Trump's birthday parade may be canceled due to thunderstorms!
The 'No Kings' mobilization is a direct response to Donald Trump's self-aggrandizing $100 million military parade and birthday celebration, an event funded by taxpayers while millions are told there's no money for Social Security, SNAP, Medicaid, or public schools.
