WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- Expressing hope that the future of Tibet and China will move beyond mistrust , the Dalai Lama accepted the Congressional Gold Medal from President Bush Wednesday during a ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda . `` I am deeply touched that this great honor has been given to me , a Buddhist monk born of a simple family , '' he said . Earlier , China slammed the United States for bestowing the nation 's highest civilian honor on the Dalai Lama , calling the ceremony an affront to the budding relations between the countries . But the Dalai Lama repeated his stance that he 's seeking a `` meaningful autonomy '' for the Tibetan people , not independence from China . `` Despite all this , Beijing continues to allege that my hidden agenda is a separation and restoration [ of ] Tibet 's old social political system . Such a notion is unfounded and untrue , '' he said . `` Much of the world is waiting to see how China 's concepts of harmonious society and peaceful rights would unfold . '' Though Bush said the ceremony was not meant to antagonize the Chinese , he made repeated references to religious oppression . `` Americans can not look to the plight of the religiously oppressed and close our eyes or turn away , '' Bush said . Calling the Dalai Lama a `` universal symbol of peace and tolerance , a shepherd to the faithful and a keeper of the flame for his people , '' Bush presented the medallion to the Dalai Lama . Watch actor Richard Gere explain the importance of the ceremony » . The spiritual leader grinned broadly , pulling the award from its case and showing it to the lawmakers with whom he shared the stage . Democratic and Republican leaders praised the Dalai Lama 's record of promoting peace and urged China to allow the return of the exiled leader . Bush also lauded the spiritual leader who as a boy kept a model of the Statue of Liberty by his bedside . The president met privately Tuesday with Tenzin Gyatso , the 14th dalai lama , in the White House . Before the Wednesday honor , Bush said he was attending the ceremony because he admires the Dalai Lama , the two of them both support religious freedom and because `` I like going to the gold medal ceremonies . '' He further said fostering religious freedom was in China 's best interests and that Beijing should meet with the Dalai Lama . `` If they were to sit down with the Dalai Lama , they would find him to be a man of peace and reconciliation , '' Bush said . China saw the ceremony as a political statement and believes the honor represents U.S. acquiescence to the Dalai Lama 's calls for Tibetan autonomy . Tibet , said Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao , is `` an inalienable part of China '' and Chinese-Tibetan affairs are strictly a matter of Chinese domestic policy . `` U.S. leaders meeting the Dalai [ Lama ] seriously violate the basic principles of international relations , '' Liu said . The Dalai Lama laughed off Chinese criticism of his visit , saying Tuesday in Washington , `` That always happens . '' The Congressional Gold Medal -- one of four honors Congress is doling out Wednesday -- is presented `` both for singular acts of exceptional service and for lifetime achievement . '' Past recipients include Mother Teresa , former South African President Nelson Mandela , former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and baseball and civil rights icon Jackie Robinson . White House spokesman Dana Perino said Bush considered the Dalai Lama `` a great spiritual leader . '' Bush , who has met with the Dalai Lama four times , told Chinese President Hu Jintao at a summit in Australia last month that he would be attending Wednesday 's ceremony , Perino said . She quickly dismissed the notion that the president was trying to make a statement by attending the ceremony . The White House is generally measured in its criticism of China as it seeks to manage a booming trade relationship and a desire to enlist Chinese cooperation on nuclear standoffs with North Korea and Iran . Beijing has claimed to be the legitimate and rightful government of Tibet since 1951 , the year after China invaded the then-independent state . Some say the claim does n't jibe with international law . Allegations abound that China has stifled Tibetans ' religious and other fundamental freedoms , sometimes violently . The Dalai Lama has led a government in exile from neighboring India for decades . In 1959 , the then-24-year-old Buddhist leader fled Tibet during a failed uprising against the Chinese . Perino said she did not think the meeting -- which the administration had worked to downplay -- would seriously affect U.S.-China relations . Added Bush on Wednesday , `` I do n't think it ever damages relations when an American president talks about that religious tolerance and religious freedom is good for a nation . I do this every time I meet with [ Chinese leaders ] . '' The promise of good intentions did not seem to assuage the Chinese government , who labeled the Dalai Lama 's work `` separatist activities . '' `` The words and deeds of the Dalai Lama in the past decades show he is a political refugee engaging in secessionist activities under the cloak of religion , '' the Foreign Ministry 's Liu said . Zhang Qingli , the Communist Party secretary of Tibet , had even harsher words for the Tibetan spiritual leader . `` He is a person who has tried to split the motherland , who lacks love for his home country , '' Zhang told reporters in Beijing . The Dalai Lama , who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1989 , has said he advocates autonomy for Tibet and is not calling for it to be a separate country . E-mail to a friend . CNN 's Jaime FlorCruz and Lesa Jansen contributed to this report .
China : Dalai Lama : China 's claim of a hidden agenda is unfounded , untrue . President Bush encourages China to sit down with ` ` version of ' '' White House says it is n't ` ` on a stick '' in China 's eye with Dalai Lama honor . China : Chinese leaders ` ` violate the basic principles of international relations ''