China warns Germany over Dalai Lama meeting

By Robert J. Saiget - AFP - via (uncensored) Yahoo! News
September 25, 2007

China on Tuesday said that a meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the Dalai Lama had damaged ties between the two nations, and called for Berlin to quickly fix the problem.

"This not only grossly interferes with the internal affairs of China, it hurts the feelings of the Chinese people and seriously undermines China-Germany relations," foreign ministry spokesman Jiang Yu said when asked about Sunday's meeting.

"We request that Germany... take concrete and effective measures to eliminate the negative impact made by this mistaken move so as not to bring any unnecessary damage to China-Germany relations."

Defying harsh warnings from China, Merkel held a historic meeting with the Tibetan spiritual leader in Berlin on Sunday, during which she gave support to the Dalai Lama's quest for greater cultural autonomy for his homeland.

In an apparent response, China cancelled two top-level bilateral meetings, one a standing breakfast between the countries' foreign ministers on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly in New York.

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