China lashes out at Blinken’s meeting with Dalai Lama aide

China did not like US secretary of state Antony Blinken's meeting with Tibetan leader Dalai Lama’s representative in New Delhi. In a sreong worded reation, Beijing on Thursday lashed out at Blinken, saying it violated Washington’s commitment to recognise Tibet as part of China. spokesperson Zhao Lijian said the Tibet affairs were purely China’s own affairs and should not be interfered with by any outside forces. “The 14th Dalai Lama is not a mere religious figure, but a political exile who has long engaged in anti-China separatist activities and is trying to separate Tibet from China,” Zhao said when asked to respond to Blinken’s meetings. Zhao said, China  firmly opposes any form of contact between officials of any country and the Dalai Lama.

“We urge the US to honour its commitment to stop meddling in China’s internal affairs under the pretext of Tibetan affairs, and offer no support to Tibet independence forces to engage in anti-China separatist activities,” Zhao said. China, he said, will take all necessary measures to defend its rights and interests. The US contacts with the “Dalai clique”, and any form they take, violate the US commitment to recognise Tibet as part of China, he said. 

Blinken on Wednesday met with Ngodup Dongchung, a representative of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), also known as the Tibetan government-in-exile, who presented him with a scarf from the Dharmshala-based Dalai Lama. Blinken also met Geshe Dorji Damdul, director of Tibet House in Delhi, during an interaction with representatives from civil society groups. Blinken’s meeting with Ngodup Dongchung was seen as the most significant one since the Dalai Lama met then-president Barack Obama in Washington in 2016.