WASHINGTON — President Obama met with the Dalai Lama at the White House on Friday over the stern objection of China, which warned the meeting would “inflict grave damages” on the U.S. relationship with the Asian nation.

Obama greeted the Dalai Lama while the Tibetan spiritual leader and fellow Nobel laureate was in the United States on a speaking tour. The meeting was closed to photographers, and the Dalai Lama departed the White House without speaking to reporters.

Additional Photos

The Dalai Lama leaves after speaking at an event titled “Happiness, Free Enterprise, and Human Flourishing” at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington on Thursday. The Associated Press

After the meeting, the White House said Obama offered his “strong support for the preservation of Tibet’s unique religious, cultural, and linguistic traditions” and for human rights protections for Tibetans in China. The Dalai Lama told Obama he’s not seeking Tibetan independence, and both leaders said they hoped talks would resume between Beijing and the Dalai Lama’s representatives.

When the White House announced the meeting late Thursday, China responded almost immediately, urging Obama to cancel it in what has become something of a diplomatic ritual whenever the president meets with the exiled Buddhist monk. In a biting statement, China’s government accused Obama of letting the Dalai Lama use the White House to promote anti-Chinese activities.

“It is a severe violation of the principles of international relations,” said Hua Chunying, a spokeswoman for China’s Foreign Ministry. “It will inflict grave damages upon the China-U.S. relationship.”

Beijing has often protested when world leaders have granted audiences to the Dalai Lama, including when Obama met with him in 2010 and again in 2011. Chinese officials denounce the Dalai Lama as a separatist responsible for instigating self-immolations by Tibetans inside China, but he is widely respected around the world for his advocacy of peace and tolerance.

Obama hosted the Dalai Lama in the White House’s Map Room, rather than the Oval Office, where the president traditionally brings a visiting leader for a round of photographs. The private meeting, closed to reporters despite media requests for access, suggested an attempt to avoid the appearance of a formal meeting between two heads of state.

The White House said Obama was meeting with the Dalai Lama in the visitor’s capacity as a cultural and religious leader. As if to indicate a reaction had been expected, officials reiterated that the United States recognizes Tibet as part of China and doesn’t support Tibetan independence.

At the same time, officials said they were concerned about tensions and deteriorating human rights in China’s Tibetan areas, urging Beijing to resume talks with the Dalai Lama or his followers without preconditions.

China bitterly opposes the Dalai Lama’s quest for greater Tibetan autonomy and is wary of Obama’s efforts to increase U.S. influence in the region.

Relations between the United States and China are already on edge over Beijing’s increasingly aggressive steps to assert itself in the region, including in territorial disputes with its smaller neighbors. China’s emergence as a leading global economic and military power has strained ties with Washington, and the two have also clashed over cybertheft and human rights.

A frequent visitor to the United States, the Dalai Lama has lived in exile in northern India since fleeing China in 1959.

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