Chinese officials will be brought to account for rights abuses in Tibet if I’m next US president, says Biden

Democratic nominee said he would meet the Dalai Lama and press Beijing to return to dialogue with Tibetan representatives if elected

Chinese President Xi had vowed to tighten control over autonomous region just days before Biden statement

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Democratic US presidential nominee and former vice-president Joe Biden says Donald Trump has “turned a blind eye” to the situation in Tibet. Photo: Reuters

Published: 2:03pm, 4 Sep 2020Updated: 7:11am, 17 Oct 2020

United States presidential candidate Joe Biden has said he would sanction Chinese officials responsible for human rights abuses in Tibet if elected in November.

In his strongest and clearest statement yet on the Tibet issue, the Democratic presidential nominee said he would meet the Dalai Lama and work with US allies in pressing Beijing to return to dialogue with representatives of the Tibetan people if he is elected as the next US president.

Biden’s statement came after Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to tighten control over Tibet, a region on the western border with India, at a high-level meeting that concluded last Saturday.

Xi said China must build “an impregnable fortress” to maintain stability in Tibet and educate the public to fight against “splittism”.

Biden said in the statement that Xi’s message was “the latest efforts by Beijing to crush ethnic minorities that seek to preserve their distinct culture, language and beliefs”.

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