World Tibet Network News Saturday, June 27, 1998

BEIJING, June 27 (AFP) - US President Bill Clinton told Chinese President Jiang Zemin on Saturday he would like Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama if they ever met. "I have spent time with the Dalai Lama and I believe him to be an honest man, and I believe if President Jiang had a conversation with the Dalai Lama then they would like each other very much," Clinton said. He earlier called for China to start talks with the Dalai Lama on the future of Tibet, under the condition that the troubled region remains part of China. China, which claims its sovereignty over Tibet dates back to the thirteenth century, "liberated" the region in 1951. The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule and Beijing has so far refused to meet with the him and accuses him of working for the independence of Tibet.