“I still hope to live for over 130 years,” the Dalai Lama told followers around the world and those gathered in the northern Indian hill town of Dharamshala, where he has lived since fleeing Tibet in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule.

The Dalai Lama, who fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule, said on Wednesday that upon his death he would be reincarnated as the next spiritual leader and that only the Gaden Phodrang Trust would be able to identify his successor. He previously said the person will be born outside China.

China said it has the right to approve the Dalai Lama's successor, warning India against any interference in its 'domestic affairs'.