MOSCOW, April 24 (AFP) - Beijing will hold talks with the Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, if he publicly states that Tibet is an inalienable part of China, Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen said here Thursday.

"There are some reports that the Dalai Lama wants to starts talks with China. We want the Dalai Lama to publicly state that Tibet is an inalienable part of China and that he is against Tibetan independence. Then we can start talks and then he can come back to China," Qian told a news conference.

Earlier Thursday China protested over a meeting between US President Bill Clinton and the Dalai Lama on Wednesday.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said Beijing "firmly opposes any support for the separatist activities of the Dalai Lama."

"China's position is firm. We have already made representations with the Americans on the subject," he said.

During the meeting, Clinton assured the spiritual leader he was concerned about protecting Tibet and called for direct talks between the exiled Himalayan god-king and Beijing, a White House spokesman said.

China seized control of Tibet in 1951, and the Dalai Lama fled into exile eight years later following an abortive uprising against Chinese rule.

The government-in-exile he has since headed in India is unrecognised by any country, but the spiritual leader's campaign for Tibetan self-determination has won him international acclaim. The Dalai Lama was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1989.