The Dalai Lama emerged from his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama on Thursday and said he was "very happy" with the talks.

Tibet's spiritual leader made a private visit to the White House and later said the two discussed the promotion of peace, human values and religious harmony.

The visit took place in the Map Room, part of the president's official residence, and not the Oval Office, where he conducts official business.

Despite the less formal setting, Chinese officials had warned the meeting could threaten trust and co-operation between the United States and China.

The Dalai Lama, 74, fled Tibet for India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule. China accuses the Dalai Lama of pushing for Tibetan independence and believes that shunning the exiled Tibetan monk should be a basic principle of international relations.

The Dalai Lama bows on his arrival in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. (Alex Brandon/Associated Press)

Complaints 'rhetorical'

But a meeting between the president and Dalai Lama was seen as "crucial," according to Stephen Yates, a senior fellow in Asian Studies at the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, D.C.

"It's very, very important to send a signal to those who basically risk everything … to leave Tibet to find exile in India or elsewhere that there are people in high places in the world who know of their struggle and care about the reality on the ground," Yates told CBC News.

"I consider that to be perhaps the most consequential element of this [meeting]."

Yates described China's objections to meetings such as the one between the Dalai Lama and Obama as "largely rhetorical."

Earlier meeting delayed

Relations between the countries are already strained on both sides. The U.S. is concerned about internet censorship in China while China opposes U.S. plans to sell $6 billion worth of arms to Taiwan, the self-governing island China claims as its own territory.

Obama had been under pressure to meet with the Dalai Lama after putting off a meeting in October.

During a visit to China in November, Obama made it clear the U.S. does not support Tibetan independence, calling the mountainous region "part of the People's Republic of China."

But he didn't appease Chinese expectations altogether, calling for the "early resumption of dialogue between the Chinese government and representatives of the Dalai Lama to resolve any concerns and differences the two sides may have."