Beijing, Feb 19 (IANS) China Friday summoned the US ambassador over President Barack Obama's meeting with the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama and accused it of 'grossly interfering' in the country's internal affairs and 'damaging' Sino-US ties.

Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai summoned Jon Huntsman and lodged 'solemn representations' over Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama at the White House.

'The US act grossly interfered in China's internal affairs, gravely hurt the Chinese people's national sentiments and seriously damaged the Sino-US ties,' Xinhua quoted Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu as saying Friday.

Ma said: 'Tibet is an inalienable part of the inviolable territory of China, and the issues concerning Tibet are purely internal affairs of China.'

China firmly opposes leaders or government officials of any country meeting the Dalai Lama, and also firmly opposes any country or anyone using the Dalai Lama issue to interfere in its internal affairs, he added.

'The Dalai Lama's words and deeds have shown that he is not a pure religious figure, but a political exile who has all along been engaged in separatist activities under the

pretext of religion,' the spokesman said.

He went on to say that the Dalai Lama's visit to the US and meeting its president grossly violated the basic norms governing international relations, and ran counter to the principles set forth in three China-US joint communiques and the China-US joint statement, Ma said.

'It also went against the repeated commitments by the US government that the US recognises Tibet as part of China and gives no support to 'Tibet independence',' he said, while stressing China's 'strong dissatisfaction' with and 'resolute opposition' against such a move.

Ma warned that anyone who attempts to use the Dalai Lama issue to interfere in China's internal affairs 'is doomed to failure'.

He demanded the US seriously consider China's stance and stop supporting anti-China separatist forces that seek 'Tibet independence'.

The US should stop interfering in China's internal affairs and make concrete actions to maintain healthy and steady growth of China-US relations, he said.

The Dalai Lama, who along with many of his supporters fled Tibet and took refuge in India in 1959, has spent the last two decades of his exile campaigning for 'meaningful autonomy' for his homeland.