Dalai Harm

China has warned that its relationship with the US would suffer if American President Barack Obama were to agree to meet with exiled Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama. “[A Chinese] official, Zhu Weiqun, said if a country’s leaders meet with the Dalai Lama ‘we will take necessary measures to help them realize’ the possible harm, he said, without giving further details. Mr. Zhu is the executive deputy minister of the United Front Work Department, the arm of the Chinese Communist Party that officially manages ethnic policy. Any move by American leaders to meet with the Dalai Lama will ‘harm others but bring no profit to itself either,’ Mr. Zhu said. White House officials have said Mr. Obama plans to meet with the Dalai Lama early this year. Last fall, when the Dalai Lama visited the United States, Mr. Obama declined to meet with him to avoid angering China before Mr. Obama’s first trip to Beijing, in November. Mr. Zhu made his remarks at a morning press conference that was held to give details on recent negotiations between the Chinese government and envoys of the Dalai Lama.”