Chinese FM spokesperson Mao Ning

In response to the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's latest birthday greeting to the 14th Dalai Lama and relevant remarks on Xizang-related affairs, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday that Xizang-related affairs are purely China's internal affairs and brook no interference from any external forces. 

Mao emphasized that the 14th Dalai Lama is not a purely religious figure, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the guise of religion. He and the so-called "Xizang government-in-exile" have no right at all to represent people in Xizang, still less to decide the future of Xizang.  

Under the Party's policy for governing Xizang in the new era, Xizang today enjoys robust economic growth, social harmony and stability, and the preservation and promotion of cultural traditions, Mao said. The rights and freedoms of all ethnic groups, including freedom of religious belief and the use and development of their own spoken and written languages, are fully protected, the spokesperson said, noting that the international community can see this clearly, and the US has no right to make irresponsible remarks. 

The spokesperson urged the US side to fully recognize the importance and sensitivity of Xizang-related issues, to see through the anti-China separatist nature of the Dalai Lama clique, to honor its commitments on Xizang-related matters, and to stop interfering in China's internal affairs or sending any wrong signals to separatist forces advocating "Xizang independence."