China on Tuesday said it was still open to talks with the Dalai Lama so long as he recognised Tibet as a inalienable part of its territory even as it accused the Tibetan spiritual leader of inciting violence in Lhasa.
"The door of dialogue still opens to Dalai, so long as he gives up the position for Tibet Independence, so long as he recognises Tibet and Taiwan as inalienable parts of the Chinese territory," Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said on Tuesday at his maiden press conference after being elected to a second five-year term.
Wen, who is the first top Chinese leader to speak on the violent protests against Chinese rule that erupted in Lahasa on Friday leaving 13 people dead, said the Dalai Lama's claim that China was engaged in "cultural genocide" in Tibet "is nothing but a lie."
"Since the peaceful liberation and especially the democratic reform, Tibet has moved forward and become more developed," Wen told reporters after the annual session of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature.
He said there was "plenty of evidence" to prove that the incident in Lhasa was "organised, premeditated, masterminded and instigated by the Dalai Lama clique."
