Antony Blinken meets Dalai Lama's representative in New Delhi

NEW DELHI: US secretary of state Antony Blinken met a representative of Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, in the Indian capital on Wednesday, a state department spokesperson said.
"Secretary Blinken had an opportunity to meet briefly this morning in New Delhi with a representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama," the official said, identifying the representative as Ngodup Dongchung. Blinken met Ngodup Dongchung along with other civil society leaders in Delhi.
Ngodup Dongchung serves as a representative of Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), also known as the Tibetan government in exile,

Blinken's meeting with Ngodup Dongchung is likely to provoke anger in China.
China's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Beijing says Tibet is a part of China and has labelled the Dalai Lama a dangerous separatist.
Blinken's meeting with Dongchung is the most significant contact with the Tibetan leadership since the Dalai Lama met then-president Barack Obama in Washington in 2016.
The CTA and Tibetan advocacy groups have received a boost in international support in recent months amid rising criticism of China's human rights record, particularly from the United States.
In November, Lobsang Sangay, the former head of the Tibetan government in exile, visited the White House, the first such visit in six decades.
A month later, the US Congress passed the Tibet Policy and Support Act, which calls for the right of Tibetans to choose the successor to the Dalai Lama, and the establishment of a US consulate in the Tibetan capital Lhasa.
Chinese troops seized Tibet in 1950 in what Beijing calls a "peaceful liberation". In 1959, the Dalai Lama fled into exile in India following a failed uprising against Chinese rule.
The Dalai Lama has made the hillside town of Dharmsala his headquarters since fleeing Tibet.
China doesn't recognize the Tibetan government-in-exile and accuses the Dalai Lama of seeking to separate Tibet from China.
The Dalai Lama denies being a separatist and says he merely advocates substantial autonomy and protection of Tibet's native Buddhist culture.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken in India

Blinken's first visit to India
US secretary of state Antony Blinken kicked off his first official visit to India on Wednesday, warning of “rising global threats to democracy” as the two nations sought common ground in their disputes with China.
"We also know that successful democracies include thriving civil societies. That's how citizens become more fully engaged in the life of their communities. It's how we organize and provide the resources to respond to emergencies. And we've seen people and organizations come together throughout Covid-19 in creative and incredibly generous ways, and civil society is also where we're able to build meaningful connections across our social, religious, and cultural differences," Blinken said.
"In short, if we want to make our democracies more open, more inclusive, more resilient, more equitable, we need a vibrant civil society," he added.
"And I'm really here to underscore the importance of the relationships between our countries, to try to deepen our ties and extend our cooperation. I think it's hard to find countries with more -- who do more together in more different areas than with the United States and India," Blinken said.
After addressing civil society groups, Blinken met his counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Indian national security advisor Ajit Doval in the national capital.
Blinken arrived in Delhi on Tuesday evening on a two-day visit with an extensive agenda featuring the rapidly evolving security situation in Afghanistan, boosting Indo-Pacific engagement and ways to enhance Covid-19 response efforts among others.
(With inputs from agencies)