NEW DELHI, Aug 17 (AFP) - A US official Sunday said Washington would take "strong action" against China if human rights violations continued in Tibet, the Press Trust of India reported.

Benjamin Gilman, chairman of a congressional committee on international relations, said in the northern town of Dharamsala, the seat of the exiled Tibetan government, that Washington was concerned over rights abuses.

"I have met Chinese President Jiang Zemin and conveyed to him American concern over the issue of human rights violations in Tibet," he was quoted as saying.

"The Chinese action in Tibet is casting its shadow over other nations and, considering the importance of the cause of Tibet, the US has appointed a special coordinator for Tibet," he said.

Warning of stiff measures if "suppression of Tibetans continued," Gilman asked Beijing to enter into negotiations with the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual and temporal head, for "self-determination in Tibet and solutions to other problems."

The Dalai Lama has been living in India since fleeing his homeland in 1959 following an abortive anti-Chinese revolt. India is also home to around 100,000 Tibetan exiles.