(TibetanReview.net, Nov14’26) – The executive head of the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), Sikyong Penpa Tsering, has on Nov 14 accused China of deliberately prolonging disputes to create strategic pressure to gain advantages in international negotiations while using its actions in Tibet as a template for gaining regional and even global influence.
The Tibetan Sikyong has raised his concerns in his meetings with US officials and lawmakers in Washington, DC, lobbying support for Assuring the Future of Tibet Act (AFTA) of 2026, which is currently under consideration.
The bill, should it pass, will recognise the CTA as the democratically elected government of the Tibetan people.
In discussions with US leaders, Sikyong Penpa Tsering has accused China of suppressing Tibetan identity, culture and traditions through policies amounting to “cultural genocide”. Expressing concern over conditions inside Tibet, he has alleged that restrictions on the Tibetan language, changes to monastery designs and the growing imposition of Chinese cultural practices were threatening the region’s distinct identity.
He has criticised the international community for its silence on developments in Tibet while expanding economic and trade relations with China.
Speaking to PTI in Washington, he has warned US leaders that China’s actions in Tibet had broader implications for its approach to expanding its regional and global influence.
He has noted that China’s expansionist ambitions, which began with Tibet in 1950, were now increasingly visible in the East China Sea and South China Sea.
In this connection, he has referred to China’s territorial and diplomatic disputes with India, Japan, Taiwan, the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations, alleging that Beijing was creating strategic pressure to gain advantages in international negotiations.
“China is very good at creating leverages for their own benefit. If there’s something they don’t want to resolve, they don’t resolve it,” he has said.
In the face of all this, Sikyong Penpa Tsering has described the United States as Tibet’s most important international partner and said the Tibetan cause continued to enjoy strong bipartisan support in the US Congress.