Door remains open for talks with representatives of the Dalai Lama

New Delhi, Nov 20 : Independence for Tibet autonomous region can never be considered, but the door remains open for talks with representatives of the Dalai Lama, a senior Chinese government official has said.

Zhu Weiqun, executive vice-minister of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks when meeting a group of overseas Chinese in Paris.

The remarks came after three rounds of talks with the Dalai Lama's representatives after the March 14 riots in Tibet that caused the loss of lives and economic damage, the China Daily reported.

Central government officials and representatives of the Dalai Lama have held nine rounds of talks in total since 2002.

"It is impossible for the central government to talk with the Dalai Lama's personal representatives over the so-called Tibet issue. The Tibet government-in-exile is illegal, and the central government will not talk with it," Zhu said.

"There is no compromising on this issue," he said.

"The central government will talk only with the personal representatives of the Dalai Lama about his future on the condition he gives up his wrong stance."

Zhu, a major central government negotiator with the Dalai Lama's representatives, said that although the Dalai Lama's side has always changed its strategies in accordance with the situation, the Dalai Lama's stance on pursuing independence has never changed.

In another development, delegations of Chinese Tibetologists have visited countries including the Czech Republic, Italy, France and Finland recently to brief their hosts on Tibet's history and its social and economic developments.

ANI