DHARMSALA, India (AP) -- The Dalai Lama warned his fellow Tibetan exile leaders Sunday to be prudent in their future planning or risk failure, after the leaders said they might push for independence for their Himalayan homeland if China refuses to grant it autonomy soon.
The Buddhist spiritual leader did not directly address the recommendations that emerged from the rare, pivotal meeting of hundreds of Tibetan leaders from around the globe that ended on Saturday.
He appeared to be speaking about the larger Tibetan cause, which many exile leaders believe is at a crossroads.
"The next twenty years, if we are not careful, if we are not prudent in our plans, there is a great danger," the Dalai Lama said. "It could lead to the danger of failure."
He later said there is a need for a "dialogue with the Chinese people," but gave few details.
"My trust in Chinese officials is becoming thinner but my trust in Chinese public is still alive and strong," he told the Tibetan exiles.
China says Tibet has been Chinese territory for 700 years, though many Tibetans argue it was effectively independent most of that time.
Since Communist troops swept into Tibet in 1950, Chinese authorities have crushed any sign of Tibetan nationalist sentiment. An independence movement would be near impossible, at least in the near future, and China has long made clear it will not accept autonomy for Tibet.
The delegates on Saturday reaffirmed support for the Dalai Lama's path of measured compromise with China, a push for Tibetan autonomy called "the middle way." But they also said it is time to stop sending envoys to Beijing for further talks, and if moderation doesn't work, they vowed to call for independence -- a dramatic break with a decades-long conciliatory approach to Beijing.
The 73-year-old spiritual leader did not explain his comments when he addressed reporters later Sunday morning, saying only that this week's meeting should not be viewed as final and that at least one more meeting of Tibetan leaders was likely in the next few weeks.
He hinted that the meeting may be held abroad but gave no details.
The Dalai Lama also said that he would remain the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people.
"Till my death I committed. No idea of retirement," he said.
He has been saying since the early 1990s that he would only consider stepping away from his role as spiritual leader when Tibet has more freedom.
"With certain degree of freedom when we return, then I will hand it over all my legitimate authority. That's one way of complete retirement," he said.
But he Dalai Lama reiterated that he is semiretired as a political leader.
"All major decisions are in his hand," he said pointing to Samdhong Rinpoche, the prime minister of the so-called Tibetan government-in-exile. "I am like senior adviser."
The Dalai Lama called the meeting in Dharmsala, the north Indian mountain town where has lived since fleeing Tibet following a failed rebellion in 1959.
He summoned the exile leaders after publicly expressing frustration over the failure of his approach to yield results with China's government, but he declined to discuss his preference for future strategy, saying he did not want to sway the debate.
