Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, celebrated his 85th birthday on July 6 in Dharamshala, India. The previous day, the Dalai Lama had spoken with over 1,300 Buddhists in Taiwan through a video chat platform. He said that his birthday wish is to visit Taiwan again. He also talked about how to cope with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the uncertain global situation.

After learning about the Dalai Lama’s birthday wish this year, the foreign ministry said that he is welcome to visit Taiwan. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Joanne Ou said the government would welcome a visit by the Dalai Lama at a time convenient to him so that he can share his Buddhist teachings. Ou also said, however, that Taiwan has yet to receive an application to visit from the Dalai Lama. 

With his moral teachings and sense of humor, the Dalai Lama has attracted a large following in Taiwan. He has visited Taiwan three times - in 1997, 2001 and 2009, during the administrations of former Presidents Lee Teng-hui, Chen Shui-bian, and Ma Ying-jeou respectively. His most recent visit was at the invitation of then Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu. He gave blessings and held prayers for nearly 700 victims who had died when Typhoon Morakot struck Taiwan in August that year.