US encourages China to resume Dialogue with His Holiness

Undersecretary Dobriansky and His Holiness the Dalai Lama in Dharamsala in 2006/ FILE PHOTO

Dharamshala: The United States said it strongly encourages the Chinese government to resume dialogue with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, stressing that His Holiness is not seeking independence for Tibet, but through talks, wants to resolve outstanding issues of Tibet.

"The Dalai Lama's public statements mirror the private statements he's made to us. He's not calling for independence for Tibet; he's calling for dialogue with Chinese authorities to be able to help resolve many of the outstanding questions, including people's rights to practice their religion freely, to observe their cultural traditions freely and to be able to otherwise enjoy some basic civil liberties," State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said.

"We’ve strongly encouraged them (Chinese government) to reach out to the Dalai Lama and to his representatives to be able to have the kind of dialogue that would reduce tensions and help lead to a resolution of some of these differences," Casey said.

The remarks came after His Holiness the Dalai Lama's meeting US Undersecretary of State Paula Dobriansky at the University of Michigan on Monday.

It was His Holiness the Dalai Lama's 12th meeting with Dobriansky, who is also the special coordinator for Tibet Issues.

"I want to express my deep appreciation to your government, your president and State Department and secretary of state and yourself (for) always showing genuine concern," AP reported as His Holiness was quoted saying.

Tom Casey said: "Her (Dobriansky) meeting was part of our ongoing efforts to promote dialogue between His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government. We’ve long held that that kind of dialogue is the best way to resolve the longstanding issues with respect to Tibet. And of course, that includes trying to help deal with the consequences of some of the recent violence there."