News 
Taipei: The U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee passed a bill on 20 May 2009 which will authorize funding for foreign affairs.The bill also allows the U.S. Secretary of State to seek the establishment of a United States Consulate General in Lhasa, the Tibetan capital and vests in the United States Embassy in Beijing establishing the department responsible for Tibetan affairs.2002 amendments made to the Tibetan Policy that act empowers the U.S. Secretary of State to seek the establishment of the Consulate General in Lhasa in order to skyrocket Tibet's tourism industry, propagate political, economic and social development in the Tibet Autonomous Region, and provide services for American citizens.
According to another report, the United States will also pay 17 million U.S. dollars to support the "Voice of America" and "Radio Free Asia," organizations which broadcast news in support of Tibet. Fiscal support pertaining to health, food, transportation will be awarded to Tibetans in exile. The aims is to strengthen the "commitment to Tibetan culture and environmental protection" by instigating the construction of non-governmental organizations and to promote dialogue between His Holiness the Dalai Lama and the Chinese government.
According to Xinhua, 1 June 2009, "On 20 May, the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee passed a bill authorizing the U.S. Secretary of State to seek the establishment of the United States Consulate General in Lhasa, and authorized in the United States Embassy in Beijing to set up the department responsible for Tibetan affairs. Some analysts believe that the new U.S. Embassy in Tibet Affairs, a strong interference with the political intentions in China's internal affairs."
The establishment of a consulate will allow for greater access to Tibet. At present, only Nepal has a consulate in Lhasa, which was established before His Holiness the Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959.. India was the second nation to be allowed to set up consulate in Lhasa. However, following the Tibetan rebellion in 1959 and the Sino-Indian border war in 1962, the Indian consulate was destablished.
An associate researcher at the China Tibetology Research Center, Yang Jun Choi, claimed that, since the 1950s when the CIA aided the Dalai Lama in his escape from Tibet, the United States Congress has supported a number of members of the 'Dalai clique', both overtly and covertly, thus intervening in Tibetan affairs. For the United States, the 'Tibetan issue' is a tool which influences its policy toward China, and the U.S. government needed Tibet to maintain a balanced relationship with the Chinese government.
This is only a translation. If there is difference between this and the Chinese original, please treat the first as final.
