A group of senior US lawmakers, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, met the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government in exile in India on Wednesday, drawing strong criticism from China.

The bipartisan group of US lawmakers led by Congressmen Michael McCaul and Pelosi met the 88-year-old Buddhist spiritual leader at his home in the hill town of Dharamsala in north India.

China, which claims Tibet as part of its territory, denounced the “external interference” and said the Himalayan region’s affairs were “purely China’s domestic affairs”.

In a speech broadcast on the government-in-exile’s Tibet TV, Pelosi told a crowd of Tibetans that it was an “honor” for her to meet the Dalai Lama.

“It’s truly a blessing,” he said.

The visit comes after the US Congress passed a bill aimed at encouraging China to hold talks with Tibetan leaders that have been stalled since 2010, and as Washington seeks to ease tensions with Beijing.

He said, “This bill is a message to the Chinese government that there is clarity in our thinking and understanding on the issue of Tibet’s independence.”

“It tells the Chinese government: ‘Things have changed now, get ready for it,'” he said.

Pelosi said the bill would be signed by US President Joe Biden “shortly.”

Ahead of the visit, the Chinese embassy in New Delhi criticised the meeting, saying the Dalai Lama “is not a purely religious figure but a political exile who engages in anti-China separatist activities under the guise of religion.”

Many exiled Tibetans fear Beijing will declare a rival successor to the Dalai Lama, cementing its control over a land where it sent troops in the 1950s.

The Dalai Lama was just 23 years old when he fled Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, fearing for his life as Chinese troops crushed a rebellion and crossed the icy Himalayas into India.

“The whole world, we are all the same human beings, we all have the same rights – and this world belongs to humanity,” the Dalai Lama, dressed in red robes and a yellow chador, told delegates.

“We must take care of this world,” he said in a video broadcast by the government-in-exile.

He said, “The people of the world should be peaceful and happy.”

He resigned as political head of his people in 2011 and handed over the reins of secular power to a government democratically elected by some 130,000 Tibetans around the world.

The head of that government, the Sikyong, Penpa Tsering, has said he does not want full independence for Tibet but rather wants to pursue a long-standing “middle way” policy, seeking greater autonomy and “resolving the Sino-Tibetan conflict through dialogue.”

But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian accused the Tibetan administration of trying to break away.

“We urge the US side to fully recognise the anti-China separatist nature of the Dalai group,” he said, reiterating Beijing’s oft-repeated stance that the high-altitude region has always been part of China.

“The United States should not sign this bill into law,” Lin said.

“China will take resolute measures to firmly safeguard its sovereignty, security and development interests.”