Tibet brooks no external interference, China tells US

China on Thursday said Tibet, locally known as Xizang, is an internal affair of China, urging the US against interference in the southern autonomous region, state media reported.

“We urge the US side to abide by its commitment to recognizing Xizang as part of China and opposing 'Xizang independence,' and to stop meddling in China’s internal affairs by exploiting Xizang-related issues," said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning.

She was responding to questions about reports that the US State Department had urged Beijing to resume dialogue with the Dalai Lama.

The US call came after a Tibetan activist, Logba Rangzen, died from injuries sustained in a self-immolation incident near the UN headquarters in New York City last week.

The incident came as the US and the EU expressed concern over China's new ethnic unity law, which took effect this week and promotes a "shared" national identity among the country's 55 ethnic minority groups, including Tibetans and Uyghurs.

China says it peacefully liberated Tibet in 1950, while international human rights groups and Tibetan exiles have criticized Beijing's policies in the region. China rejects those allegations.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao also stressed: “Xizang affairs are China's internal affairs that brook no interference by any external forces.”