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No change in Indian policy on Tibet: PM
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 23
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today assured the Lok Sabha that there was no change in India’s decades-old policy on Tibet and nothing new had been said about the presence of Dalai Lama.

Making a suo motu statement on his visits to Germany, Russia, France and China, the Prime Minister said: “There is no change in our decades-old policy. We have never doubted that Tibet Autonomous Region is a part of territory of People’s Republic of China... There can, therefore, be no argument against reiterating it. We have said nothing new about the presence of His Holiness Dalai Lama or of Tibetan refugees in India”.

Mr Vajpayee said both he and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao agreed that the joint work on the clarification of the Line of Actual Control should continue smoothly and that peace and tranquility in the border areas be maintained.

He said the India-China Joint Declaration had given a new momentum to the settlement of the boundary question between the two countries.

Mr Vajpayee said the Chinese side had also agreed to consider his suggestion for opening up of additional routes for the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. He said the cultural relationship between the two countries received a new impetus during his visit.

“All the leaders I met naturally showed interest in the situation in South Asia. I was happy to note that all of them expressed support and appreciation for the hand friendship we have extended to Pakistan and hoped Pakistan would reciprocate. All of them spoke strongly against the menace of terrorism.”