Pope John Paul II met the Dalai Lama today in a low-profile Vatican visit due to Rome's prickly relations with China,
The name of the exiled spiritual leader of Tibet did not appear on the list of people received by the Pope in the Vatican's daily bulletin as the names of most high-profile visitors usually do.
A spokesman said this was because it was "an exclusively religious visit" although other such visits with religious leaders have been listed.
The Vatican has difficult ties with China. Chinese Roman Catholics are not allowed to recognise the Pope's authority and must join a state-backed "patriotic church".
The Vatican says the Communist government persecutes Catholics and estimates that eight million Chinese who are loyal to the Pope worship secretly in underground churches.
Although relations between China and the Tibetan figurehead have appeared to thaw in the past year and a half, China still objects to governments talking to the Dalai Lama and protested in September when he met US President George W. Bush.
The Dalai Lama's visit to Italy has stirred controversy because no meeting has yet been planned with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Some parliamentarians have said the cabinet was cold-shouldering the Tibetan to avoid displeasing China.