by Philippe Massonnet

PARIS, Oct 29 (AFP) - The Dalai Lama, Tibet's spiritual leader, was kept at arms' length here Tuesday as French officials feared sparking a row with Beijing ahead of an official visit to China by President Jacques Chirac.

French foreign ministry spokesman Jacques Rummelhardt took pains last week to describe the three-day visit by the 1989 Nobel peace prize-winner as "pastoral," calling instead for "constructive dialogue" between China and Tibet over human rights and the vexed question of Tibet's status.

In Beijing on Tuesday, Shen Guogfang, a spokesman for the foreign ministry, warned France against any official contact with the Dalai Lama while the Tibetan spiritual leader is in France.

"France has assured us that the visit of the Dalai Lama has no official character," he said. "We hope that the French authorities will honor ... their promises on the subject of this visit," he said at a regular news conference.

"Otherwise, our relations will be affected," he said.

French foreign ministry officials on Tuesday had no comment on the warning, which was seen here as a routine Chinese reaction.

The Dalai Lama, who arrived Monday, will meet with pro-Tibet deputies and senators on Wednesday. Contrary to earlier reports, he will not address the National Assembly and will not be welcomed by speaker Philippe Seguin.

On Tuesday evening the exiled Tibetan leader will attend a public meeting on spiritual questions organised by the Tibetan community in France and a pro-Tibet association.

Beijing, which has ruled Tibet since 1950, has already condemned a visit by the Dalai Lama to the European parliament in Strasbourg last week as "gross interference" in its internal affairs.

not calling for Tibet's independence or separation from Beijing but only for increased autonomy.

"We have our own contact channels with the Dalai Lama, and he has never officially made it known that he has renounced his independence demands," Shen said.

"If now the Dalai Lama proclaims everywhere that he no longer demands independence, then it is to better deceive public opinion and western governments," he said.

"On this point, the position of the Chinese government is very clear:

the doors of negotiations will open as soon as the Dalai Lama renounces independence" for Tibet, Shen added.

The Dalai Lama's visit comes at a delicate time for Paris as it seeks to build bridges with Beijing, with Chirac preparing his first official visit to China as French president in May.

The doors of the president's Elysee palace and the Matignon offices of Prime Minister Alain Juppe are remaining firmly shut, at least officially.

Rummelhardt said: "We recognize China within its borders, which include the autonomous region of Tibet," although he conceded that tensions exist between Beijing and Lhasa.

"Despite these tensions we note that the Dalai Lama constantly reiterates his support for a non-violent path in general, and for the critical dialogue that the European Union has engaged with China on the issue of human rights," he added.

Chirac's visit is to cement relations with China that began improving only in 1994 following a row two years earlier after France sold fighter planes to Taiwan.

That crisis deepened further in November 1993 when the late French president Francois Mitterrand met with the Dalai Lama at the Elysee Palace. Chirac, who was then mayor of Paris, also welcomed him at city hall.

During another visit in 1994, the former president's wife, Danielle, who runs the human rights group France-Libertes, met with the Dalai Lama.

Since then France has welcomed Chinese President Jiang Zemin and Prime Minister Li Peng, while its politicians have called for talks between the Dalai Lama and China.

The Dalai Lama, on his sixth visit to France, is also due to hold talks with with opposition Socialist Party leader Lionel Jospin.

On Monday the Dalai Lama attacked China, saying Beijing misrepresented his cause. "The Chinese government does not want to talk to me," he told AFP in an interview. "They say Tibetan movements abroad are manipulated by the West. That is false. They say I want independence for Tibet. That is false."

The Dalai Lama added: "I want to talk about Tibet's autonomy. ... We have to find a fair solution acceptable to both peoples," he said, adding, "We have to live side by side."

Asked about the absence of invitations to meet Chirac and Juppe, the Dalai Lama said: "I would be very happy to meet them, but if it causes problems for them, I do not want to complicate matters."

Chinese Premier Li said in Beijing on Monday that he had high hopes for Chirac's visit next May "in the economic and political spheres," and that China appreciated Chirac's advocacy of "dialogue without confrontation."