Sarkozy scorned for Dalai meeting

Chinese state media (which really means the Chinese government) has launched a co-ordinated attack on French President Nicolas Sarkozy for meeting Tibet's spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama.

One newspaper said he had shown the "wild ambition of a king of the world". Another accused him of his duplicity.

Meanwhile in France, websites have been hacked and material hostile to the country and its president has appeared a lot on Chinese internet forums.

Mr Sarkozy countered that he would not compromise his "European values".

He met the 73-year-old Tibetan leader at a gathering of Nobel Peace Prize winners in Poland last Saturday, despite Chinese protests.

Beijing accuses the Dalai Lama of leading a movement for Tibet's full independence from China.

The spiritual leader said last week he was seeking autonomy within China, rather than independence from it, but he also urged the European Union - China's biggest trading partner - to stand up to Beijing on human rights.

Man Sarkozy has been pissing everyone off recently. This time though I find it weird Beijing is so pissed Sarkozy saw the Dalai Lama. I don't remember them being so mad when he has seen almost every dignitary in the past half century. If China got as mad every time as they did (or pretended to) with Sarkozy they wouldn't have anyone left in the world to get mad at.