US embassy calls Tibet a political entity under Chinese rule, urges negotiation with Tibetans

(TibetanReview.net, Aug29’24) – In his first remark on the issue since President Joe Biden signed into law the Resolve Tibet Act on Jul 12, the US Embassy in New Delhi spokesperson Christopher Elms has on Aug 28 urged China to start dialogue with Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama or his representatives without preconditions following a visit to the exile Tibetan community in Dharamshala in the north Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.

“The Resolve (Tibet) Act as you know was passed by the Congress in June this year and signed into Law by President Joe Biden in July. I can’t speak on behalf of Congress, but on behalf of the administration and on behalf of President Biden, he signed the Act into law because we agree with the sentiment of the law that is there to protect the human rights of the Tibetan people,” the ANI news service Aug 28 quoted Elms as saying.

He has also said, perhaps for the first time by a US official, that Tibet is a political entity, albeit under Chinese rule because of Beijing’s physical control of the territory.

“The law also discusses Tibet as a political entity. It’s been a long-standing policy of the United States, and the President reiterated that the United States government still see the Tibet autonomous region and other Tibetan areas of China as a part of China, that does not change anything from our policy, that’s something that President Biden does control how we determine what international borders are. However, I think the next steps are what we have been urging for a long time which is a direct negotiation between China and the Dalai Lama or his representatives.”

Elms has also noted: “It’s been 13 years since they have been these … negotiations and we encourage China to engage in negotiations directly with the Dalai Lama or his representatives without preconditions.” China has condemned the US legislation and vowed to stick to its claim of Tibet being part of it since ancient times and any discussion about the territory and the situation there as interference in its internal affairs.

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