Though China has worked hard to improve its image worldwide, especially by successfully hosting the Olympics in Beijing, recent news suggests that there is still political strife between China and its neighbors. Chinese officials lashed out at the Dalai Lama today for the spiritual leader’s continued work in a region of India that borders Chinese-controlled Tibet.

The Dalai Lama, who is a revered Buddhist leader and a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, says his work in the northeastern Indian region is purely spiritual, as he held prayer meetings and classes with followers. The Chinese government, however, claims this work represents the Dalai’s Lama desire for a separatist movement in Tibet.

China’s condemnation of the Dalai Lama’s visit is just one act in a growing list of tensions between China and India, who have long fought over the area. Though China opposed the Dalai Lama’s visit to the area entirely, India allowed it, saying that the religious leader is a welcomed guest in India and may travel wherever he may choose. The Dalai Lama’s life in India has been a constant struggle between the two nations since the leader fled Tibet in the late 1950s and has lived in exile since then.

China Criticizes the Dalai Lama<