Dalai Lama To Deliver Major Address On 90th Birthday As China Tracks Succession Moves

The 14th Dalai Lama will address a major three-day gathering of Buddhist religious figures this week ahead of his 90th birthday, as followers await details about his succession in a move that could escalate U.S.-China tensions and impact global market sentiment.

What Happened: Beijing views the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, as a separatist and claims authority to choose his successor. The Dalai Lama, according to Reuters, has stated his successor will be born outside China and urged followers to reject anyone chosen by Beijing.

The religious conference, being held for the first time since 2019, will feature more than 100 Tibetan Buddhist leaders and a video statement from the Dalai Lama. Hollywood actor Richard Gere will attend the gathering in Dharamshala, India, according to organizers.

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Why It Matters: A bipartisan congressional delegation headed by Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) and including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, visited the Dalai Lama in June 2024 to discuss legislation pressuring China on the Tibet dispute.

“China is trying to grab this institution for its political purpose,” said Dolma Tsering Teykhang, deputy speaker of the Tibetan parliament-in-exile, highlighting the geopolitical stakes that could affect Sino-American relations and global trade dynamics.

The Dalai Lama established the Gaden Phodrang Foundation in 2015 to oversee succession protocols, ending a 368-year tradition of combined spiritual and temporal leadership by transferring political authority to democratically elected officials in 2011.

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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