China warned US President Barack Obama on Wednesday that a meeting between him and the Dalai Lama would further erode ties between the two powers, already troubled by Washington's arms sales to Taiwan.

The White House confirmed on Tuesday that Obama will meet the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader reviled by Beijing as a "separatist" for seeking self-rule for his homeland.

China's response to the announcement underscored the tensions in ties between the world's biggest and third biggest economies, with the Chinese Foreign Ministry saying President Hu Jintao himself had urged Obama not to meet the exiled Tibetan leader.

Ma Zhaoxu, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman, said his government "resolutely opposes the leader of the United States having contact with the Dalai under any pretext or in any form", according to a statement on the ministry's website.

Ma said that during Obama's summit with Hu last November, the Chinese leader "explained China's stern position of resolutely opposing any government leaders and officials meeting the Dalai".

"We urge the US to fully grasp the high sensitivity of the Tibetan issues, to prudently and appropriately deal with related matters, and avoid bringing further damage to China-US relations," said Ma.

China's angry response to the White House announcement was predictable, as was the White House's confirmation of the meeting. But the flare-up comes soon after Beijing lashed Washington over a $6.4 billion US weapons package for Taiwan, the self-ruled island that Beijing deems an illegitimate breakaway province.   

It also adds to Sino-US tensions over the value of China's currency, trade protectionism and Internet freedoms.   

The White House shrugged off Beijing's earlier warnings about the meeting between Obama and the Dalai Lama, which may happen as early as this month.   

"The president told China's leaders during his trip last year that he would meet with the Dalai Lama and he intends to do so," White House spokesman Bill Burton told reporters traveling with Obama to New Hampshire. - Reuters