There has been a mixed reaction to India’s foreign minister, Pranab Mukherjee’s statement on the Dalai Lama made days before the Olympics torch arrived for its Delhi leg. The senior minister told a media channel that: “The Dalai Lama is a respected guest of India. The nation will continue to offer him all hospitality, but during his stay in India, he should not indulge in any political activity, that could adversely affect relations between India and China.” When asked for his reaction, the Tibetan Prime Minister-in-exile, Sandhong Rinpoche told FORCE (see interview) that, “These statements are not new. Ever since we arrived in India in 1959, the position of the Indian government has been consistent.” This exactly is the problem. The stature of China and the Dalai Lama has changed so much that New Delhi needs to review its understanding of the Dalai Lama to assess how its national interests are served better. The Dalai Lama who fled Lhasa in 1959 to come to India was not welcome in the US and London. Today, he has been offered honorary Paris citizenship, and should he desire, Washington would be pleased to host him permanently. The Dalai Lama’s international stature has turned tables on China, which is defensive in the world arena and inside Tibet. Within days of calling him a liar and organising pro-China demonstrations to thwart the impact of pro-Tibet rallies protesting the Olympics torch journey for the August 2008 Games across important capitals of the world, Beijing has buckled and invited the Dalai Lama’s representatives for talks on building mutual trust. Known to set its own agenda, China which views defensive diplomacy as a sign of weakness is realistic enough to understand that the Dalai Lama has become its Achilles’ heel. It is instructive for New Delhi to appreciate Beijing’s vulnerability and dovetail it into its China policy.