Nancy Pelosi And US Lawmakers Visit Dalai Lama In India, Angering China

 

The Congressional delegation led by Republican Rep. Michael McCaul and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi meets with Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama

A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers led by former House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas., met with the Dalai Lama in India and addressed a gathering of Tibetan exiles Wednesday, a move that will likely anger China, which views the Tibetan spiritual leader as a separatist and a supporter of terrorism.

EY FACTS

The Congressional delegation met with the Dalai Lama at his residence in the North Indian hillside town of Dharamshala, which is also home to the Tibetan government in exile.

The delegation also included Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., Rep Gregory W Meeks, D-N.Y., Rep Jim McGovern, D-Mass., Rep Ami Bera, D-Calif., and Rep Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa.

McCaul told the Dalai Lama that the delegation was honored to be in his presence and hailed him for maintaining “peace of mind, compassion and forgiveness to your enemies” despite facing adversities.

The lawmakers presented the spiritual leader with a framed copy of the “Resolve Tibet Act” which condemns “all oppression and coercion of Tibetans” and affirms their right to self determination.

Penpa Tsering, the head of the Tibetan government in exile, told reporters the Dalai Lama “appreciated the U.S. Congress people for passing the legislation,” and when asked about China’s unhappiness with the visit he said: “Who can make China happy? They have to look at the reality of the situation & understand it from a better perspective.”

After meeting with the spiritual leader, the delegation addressed a gathering of Tibetans in exile.

CRUCIAL QUOTE

While addressing the exiled Tibetans, Pelosi said: “The Dalai Lama with his message of compassion...and love, he will live a long time and his legacy will live for ever.” The former speaker mentioned Chinese President Xi Jinping and said “you’ll be gone and nobody will give you credit for anything.”

CHIEF CRITIC

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian criticized the visit Tuesday, saying the Dalai Lama was not “a pure religious figure, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion. We are gravely concerned over the relevant reports and urge the US side to fully recognize the anti-China separatist nature of the Dalai group, honor the commitments the US has made to China on issues related to Xizang, have no contact with the Dalai group in any form, and stop sending the wrong signal to the world.”

Democratic former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, center, is presented with a Tibetan traditional Buddhist painting called Thangka by the President of the Central Tibetan Administration, Penpa Tsering.

COPYRIGHT 2024 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Tsering also felicitated McCaul and other members of the visiting delegation.

COPYRIGHT 2024 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

KEY BACKGROUND

The delegation’s visit to Dharamshala and meeting with the Dalai Lama will likely further escalate tensions between China and the U.S. Over the last couple of years, congressional delegations led by Pelosi and her successor former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., have visited Taiwan—which China considers a part of its territory. Officials in Beijing were angered by the visit, viewing it as meddling in China’s internal affairs and support for Taiwanese independence. Tibet, which was annexed by China in 1951, is another hot-button territorial issue for Beijing. It does not recognize the Tibetan government in exile—whose leaders were forced to flee Tibet along with the Dalai Lama after a failed uprising in 1959—and has rejected their demands of more autonomy for territory, which it calls Xizang. China also considers the Tibetan spiritual leader a dangerous separatist and has referred to him as a “wolf in monk’s robes.”