India has great potential under Modi's leadership: Dalai Lama

New Delhi: Tibetan spiritual leader The Dalai Lama is hopeful that the new Chinese leadership will work towards better Indo-China relations.

In an exclusive interview to CNN-IBN, The Dalai Lama said, "China's leadership style has changed. The new leadership is talking about harmony. President Xi Jingping should promote harmony in neighboring countries. Neither China nor india have the ability to eliminate each other, the only option is to stay with each other peacefully."

He also remarked that India had great potential to flourish under the leadership of Narendra Modi. "Narendra Modi is more energetic. I have great respect for Manmohan Singh. He was a saint PM but was too old. Modi is relatively young and full of energy. India has great potential under him," he said.

Appreciating the recent visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to New Delhii, The Dalai Lama said, "Jinping visited India despite Modi visiting Japan first. He had a very happy meeting. Trust comes not from statements but personal contacts."