Hope Mongolia draws lessons from Dalai Lama visit: China

Talking tough, China has said it hopes Mongolia shall "drawn lessons" from the Dalai Lama's visit last year and asserted that its neighbour has "promised" not to invite the Tibetan spiritual leader again.

"It is confirmed through diplomatic channels that relevant promises made by the Mongolian side to not allow the Dalai Lama to visit Mongolia is an important step to elevate bilateral relations to achieve sound growth," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing here.

Briefing the media on yesterday's telephonic conversation between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Mongolian counterpart Tsend Munkh-Orgil, the first high-level contact between the two sides after the fracas over the Dalai Lama visit, she hoped the Mongolian side would honour its commitment to not allow him to visit again.
 

In his phone talks with Munkh-Orgil, Wang hoped that Mongolia shall "draw lessons" from the Dalai Lama's visit last November and respect China's major concerns and core interests.

Wang said the development of China-Mongolia relations has been overshadowed by the negative impacts of the Dalai Lama's visit.

He said Mongolia has reflected deeply upon the visit and made an explicit promise not to allow the Dalai Lama to visit the landlocked Asian nation again.

Mongolia shall keep its promise and make practical efforts to improve the China-Mongolia relationship, Wang was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

For his part, Munkh-Orgil saidMongolia, a staunch supporter of the One-China policy, has always believed that Tibet is an integral part of China.

One-China policy stipulates that the breakaway province of Taiwan and Tibet are part of China.

After hosting the Dalai Lama, defying China, Mongolia which is banking on big ticket loans and investments from Beijing, also appealed to India for intervention after China imposed a blockade of sorts to pressure its smaller neighbour.

India reciprocated with a USD one billion credit line.

Much to the surprise of Beijing, Mongolia allowed the Dalai Lama's visit from November 18 to 23 during which he took part in several religious ceremonies.