Dalai Lama wants serious talks with China on Tibet autonomy issue

New Delhi, Apr 26 : Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, on his arrival here from the US today welcomed China's decision to hold talks with his representatives but added that the dialogue should be serious.

"Of course, talks it depends what kind of talks. If (they are) serious talks, most welcome, just mere seeing face to face, not much meaning," said the Dalai Lama.

The Dalai Lama was reacting to China's readiness for a meeting with an envoy of the exiled leader, a step welcomed by international leaders such as Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who have been urging Beijing to return to the negotiating table with the Dalai Lama.

Meanwhile, the Dalai Lama's spokesman, Tenzin Takla has said on Friday that the Dalai Lama is yet to receive a formal invitation for talks from Beijing.

He welcomed the offer as "a step in the right direction". He said face-to-face meetings could only resolve the issue.

The official Xinhua news agency has said that Beijing would start negotiations with a personal representative of the exiled Tibetan leader "in the coming days".

Six rounds of talks over the past five years between Beijing and the Dalai Lama's envoy, Lodi Gyari, have made only negligible progress.

Gyari revealed this week that the Dalai Lama had sent a letter to China's President, Hu Jintao, on March 19 offering to send emissaries to Tibet to calm the situation.

This is the first time that Beijing has announced talks before a meeting with the Dalai Lama's representative, underlining that it wants the world to know that it is holding out an olive branch. Previously, it has informed the public only after a round of negotiations has been completed.

Xinhua did not say where the negotiations would take place, although all previous talks have taken place in provincial Chinese cities.

ANI