Chinese authorities on Friday openly displayed their anger over President Barack Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama.

The Guardian reported Obama called the Tibetan spiritual leader "a good friend" after the Thursday encounter at a Washington prayer meeting.

Meanwhile, Beijing warned receiving the 79-year-old monk "is a political liability (that) backfires."

"We strongly oppose any country interfering in China's internal affairs in the name ofissues regarding Tibet," a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said according to Xinhua.

Meanwhile, Xinhua compared the meeting to "playing with fire."

"Chumming ... severely harms the mutual trust between China and the United States and downgrades Obama's credit as a national leader for breaking his commitments to China on the Tibet issue," Xinhua explained. "What lies under their hypocritical relationship is nothing but political deals and cold calculations."

At the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, Obama had referred to the Dalai Lama as a "powerful example of what it means to practice compassion" and an individual "who inspired us to speak up for the freedom and dignity of all human beings."

The president was seen clasping his hands in a gesture of reverence before waving at the Dalai Lama with a broad smile, the New York Times reported. The "highly public episode" enraged the Communist authorities in Beijing, which accuse the leader of seeking Tibetan independence. The country's People's Liberation Army invaded Tibet in 1950 and considers the region an integral part of Chinese territory.

The Dalai Lama left his homeland after the invasion and heads the Tibetan government-in-exile in Dharamshala, India. However, he has repeatedly said he seeks only the autonomy long promised by Beijing.

Nevertheless, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said on Friday the People's Republic is opposed to "foreign countries interfering in China's domestic affairs under the pretext of Tibet-related issues."

"The Dalai Lama is seeking support from foreign countries to realize his political end, but he cannot succeed," Hong Lei noted. He claimed the spiritual leader was "a political exile who has long been engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the pretext of religion."

Pope Francis, the leader of the world's more than 1.2 billion Catholics, declined to meet with the Dalai Lama in December as the Vatican is trying to improve its ties with China.

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