Beijing--Beijing threw cold water Wednesday on the possibility of re-launching talks with the Dalai Lama, saying greater autonomy for Tibet was "not up for discussion" and accusing the spiritual leader of backing "ethnic cleansing".
The statement comes months after the exiled spiritual leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner expressed optimism that Chinese President Xi Jinping may be open to restarting dialogue about the region.
In a nearly 18,000-word white paper, the Information Office of the State Council, China's Cabinet, declared that the Dalai Lama must focus on seeking "forgiveness" from the Chinese government.
"Any negotiations will be limited to seeking solutions for the Dalai Lama to completely abandon separatist claims and activities and gain the forgiveness of the central government and the Chinese people, and to working out what he will do with the rest of his life," it said.
"As the political status and system of Tibet is stipulated by the Chinese Constitution and laws, the 'Tibet issue' and 'a high degree of autonomy' are not up for discussion," it added, dismissing the Tibetan government-in-exile in India as "essentially a separatist political group".
The ruling Communist Party held nine rounds of dialogue with the Dalai Lama's envoys from 2002 to 2010 but the process produced no visible results.
The Dalai Lama has previously expressed optimism about the current administration in Beijing, in what some have seen as a possible easing of tensions with China, which has accused him of seeking secession for Tibet.
The 79-year-old Buddhist leader denies aspirations for independence and says he seeks "a high degree of autonomy" for the region.
He has called for limits to state-backed Han Chinese migration to Tibet, a stance which the white paper said was "tantamount to an ethnic cleansing of the plateau".
