BEIJING: Beijing came out with a fresh assessment of the Tibet situation on Monday, one in which it accused the Tibetan Young Congress (TYC) of links with the al-Qaida and terrorist organisations involved in the East Turkmenistan movement in west China's Xinjiang province.

The analysis, released by the official Xinhua news agency, said that Dalai Lama's government-in-exile in India consists of several TYC leaders and cadre.

"The TYC has become a terrorist organization as concepts of violence have taken root within it," Xinhua quoted official Tibetologist Liu Hongji as saying in an interview.

"The group's shadow was evident when the police confiscated a large number of guns and ammunition in some monasteries in China's Tibetan-inhabited regions after the March 14 riot," Liu said.

The charges about TYC's terrorist's activities and its links with the Tibetan government-in-exile may become a strong argument among Communist Party leaders, who are opposed to any reconciliation with the Dalai Lama.

Chinese officials have demanded an assurance from Dalai Lama's representatives that there will be no attempts by monks and their supporters to disrupt the Olympic torch relay as well as law and order in Tibet in the coming weeks, sources said.

The talks got deadlocked on Sunday as both sides refused to budge from their known stand over the March 14 riots in Lhasa. The Chinese side rejected accusations about bad handling of the riots, saying that the Lhasa authorities had responded to violence in the most appropriate manner.

Chinese officials maintained that Dalai Lama's supporters were responsible for instigating the riots and they must now ensure that there is no more disruption of law and order in Tibet, sources said. This plea was rejected by the envoys from Dharamsala, who denied having a hand in the Lhasa riots.

Chinese president Hu Jintao on Sunday tried to give a push to the process of negotiations with Dalai Lama's envoys, saying he expected it would yield "positive results".

The main purpose behind China's efforts to hold talks with the Dalai Lama's envoys is to ensure the success of the Olympic torch relay as it passes through Tibet to reach Mount Everest and to make sure that western leaders, including US president George Bush, attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Games.

But there are sections in the ruling Communist Party, which are staunchly opposed to any talks with the Dalai Lama.

Despite Chinese officials agreeing to maintain dialogue with Dalai Lama, China's state press on Monday accused the spiritual leader of "monstrous crimes", keeping up its fiery rhetoric.

"Following the March 14 incident in Lhasa, the Dalai has not only refused to admit his monstrous crimes, but he has continued to perpetuate fraud," an article in Monday's state Tibet Daily said.

The article, which did not refer to the talks, described the Dalai Lama's demands for "genuine autonomy" in Tibet and the "greater Tibetan region" as fraudulent.

