24 April,2009 11:59 AM IST | | Agencies
Tibet's exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama yesterday arrived in the United States for a week of public talks as Beijing pressured US President Barack Obama to shun him.
The Nobel Peace laureate started his visit in California, where today he is to give lectures in Santa Barbara on ethics and the nature of the mind, said Tenzin Dickyi of the Dalai Lama's New York office.
The Dalai Lama will also visit New York and Boston, where he is to dedicate a center on ethical research named after him at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
He is not scheduled to visit Washington or meet with US officials, although his supporters are hoping he will visit the US capital later this year.
China, which has stepped up its campaign to isolate the Buddhist monk, has already urged Obama not to meet with him.
"We have made representations to the US urging the US to honor its commitments and not allow the Dalai to engage in separatist activities in the US," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said earlier yesterday.
China accuses the Dalai Lama of separatism, despite his frequent statements that he is only seeking greater autonomy for Tibetans within China.
