A senior Chinese official Tuesday warned of serious damage to Sino-U.S. relations if U.S. leaders were to meet with the Dalai Lama, saying the move would "harm others but bring no profit to itself either."

The U.S. side would violate international rules by making such a decision, said Zhu Weiqun, executive vice minister of the United Front Work Department (UFWD) of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, at a press conference.

Such a move would be both irrational and harmful, he said. "If a country decides to do so, we will take necessary measures to help them realize this."