A happy birthday card from US' stacked deck

Beijing has every reason to take the statement related to the Dalai Lama and Xizang that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued on Saturday as a provocation.

While it has become routine for the top US diplomat to issue such a Happy Birthday message on July 6 every year, the stressing that Tibetans should have the "ability to freely choose and venerate religious leaders without interference", indicates that Washington thinks the Dalai Lama is counting his days.

The US lawmakers passed a Xizang-related law last month and a group of them, led by former House speaker Nancy Pelosi, paid a surprise visit to the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala, India, almost at the same time.