Talks with China disappoints Dalai Lama

Dharamshala, Jul 5 (UNI) The Dalai Lama is disappointed by the outcome of the latest round of talks with China, the Tibetan spiritual leader's special envoys today said.

"Talks with China on the Tibet issue will serve no purpose until the communist country takes tangible measures," special envoys Lodi Gyari and Kelsang Gyaltsen stated in a press release.

"In the course of our discussion, we were compelled to convey to our counterparts that in the absence of serious and sincere commitment on their part, the continuation of the present dialogue process would serve no purpose," they said.

It was the second round of talks after the May four parleys held in the aftermath of Beijing's massive crackdown on Tibetan protesters in March.

"Since Tibet has become an issue of great international concern, we had hoped that the Chinese leadership would reciprocate our efforts by taking tangible steps during this round," the envoys said.

''But on the contrary, the Chinese side even failed to agree to our proposal of issuing a joint statement with the aim of committing both parties to the dialogue process." The envoys said the Chinese side had expressed the view that the dialogue process had been productive and that it was needed to keep in mind that a half-a-century old issue of great complexity cannot be resolved in a matter of years.

The next rounds of talks on the vexed Tibet issue would be held in October, they added.

UNI XC AS PS VN1937