VITORIA, Spain, April 2 (AFP) - Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama is to visit the largely autonomous Basque region of northern Spain between April 14 and 16, an official spokesman said Wednesday.

The 1989 Nobel Peace Prize winner will meet the head of the Basque regional government Jose Antonio Ardanza, and hold several meetings in Bilbao and San Sebastian, the spokesman told AFP.

Regional authorities said the Basque government had invited the Dalai Lama because of the interest he had shown in the Basque autonomy process and its regional institutions.

His visit is also the fruit of close ties between the autonomous Basque government and Tibet based on numerous cooperation projects to develop this zone of Asia.

"The Dalai Lama would be very happy if the Tibetan people obtained a region with freedom and democracy as well as an autonomy comparable with that of the Basque country," the spokesman added.

Communist China has occupied Tibet since 1951 and its spiritual leader has lived in exile in India since 1959.