China cuts ties with Czech President Petr Pavel over meeting with Dalai Lama

China says it has suspended all ties with Czech President Petr Pavel over his recent meeting with the Dalai Lama, further straining relations between Beijing and Prague.

During a private trip to India last month, Pavel met the exiled Tibetan leader to congratulate him on his 90th birthday.

The Dalai Lama has been living in the Himalayan town of Dharamshala since fleeing Chinese rule in Tibet in 1959. Beijing sees Tibet as part of its territory and accuses the spiritual leader of being a separatist.

The meeting "seriously contravenes the political commitment made by the Czech government to the Chinese government, and harms China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity," the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

"China strongly deplores and firmly opposes this, and has lodged serious protests with the Czech side. In light of the severity of Pavel’s provocative action, China decides to cease all engagement with him," it added.

The Czech presidential office did not immediately respond to Beijing's statement.

Prior to the meeting, the office said the Dalai Lama had invited Pavel to visit and that no one from Prague had accompanied him to India.

"President Pavel took the opportunity to separate from the delegation during his return from a working visit to Japan to personally congratulate the Dalai Lama," the presidential office said last month.

The Czech presidency is a largely ceremonial but prestigious post. Late Czech President Vaclav Havel, the nation's first post-communist leader, was a friend of the Dalai Lama.

Ties between China and the Czech Republic have deteriorated in recent years.

Shortly after his election as Czech president in January 2023, Pavel angered Beijing by having a phone call with Taiwan's then-president Tsai Ing-wen.

The Czech Republic, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, but it maintains robust informal contacts with the self-governing democracy, which Beijing views as its own territory despite Taipei's rejection.