COPENHAGEN (AFP) - Tibet's spiritual leader the Dalai Lama Saturday defended his visit to Denmark as apolitical after China warned his talks with Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen could affect ties with Denmark.

The 73-year-old Dalai Lama, who was in Denmark as part of a European tour that will also take him to France, Iceland and Poland, said his visit was "not political, but spiritual and educational."

Rasmussen had qualified Friday's 45-minute meeting as private and not political.

China on Saturday denounced the meeting.

"Ignoring numerous formal approaches by China, Danish Prime Minister Rasmussen and Foreign Minister (Per Stig) Moeller persisted in meeting the Dalai Lama who came to Denmark to carry out separatist activities," foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a statement.

The "meetings severely harmed China's essential interests and relations between China and Denmark," he added.

Moeller later deplored Beijing's negative reaction. "We regret China's decision," he said in a statement, adding that talks with the Dalai Lama would not change Denmark's policy of seeking stronger ties with China.

Beijing accuses the Dalai Lama of wanting to establish an independent Tibet.

The Dalai Lama Saturday repeated he was not seeking independence and expressed dismay that Beijing continued to label him a separatist.

"We are not seeking independence," he said, adding that he has "repeated (that) a thousand times."

"But despite that, the Chinese government still accuses us continually of being separatists," he said. "What can you do?"

The Buddhist monk, who has lived in exile in India since fleeing Tibet after the failure of an anti-Chinese uprising in 1949, says he just wants meaningful autonomy for his Himalayan homeland.

The Dalai Lama has visited Denmark several times, most recently in 2003, sparking protests from Beijing each time.