U.S says meetings with Dalai Lama important for understanding region

WASHINGTON (AFX-ASIA) - A meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and the Dalai Lama today was important to the government's understanding of the region, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.

"We see (the Dalai Lama) as a respected religious figure," Boucher said.

He said undersecretary of state for Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky, who serves as the U.S. special coordinator for Tibet, will attend the meeting today.

"These are important... to our understanding of the region," Boucher said.

Boucher also denied Taiwan President Chen Shui-bian's New York stopoveren route to a five-nation tour of Latin America was planned to coincide with the Dalai Lama's annual visit to the United States.

"These events are not linked in any way," Boucher said. The visit was "a transit that was arranged for the safety, comfort and convenience of the traveller," he said.

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