US Ambassador to China visited Tibet: State Department

Locke made this trip to the Aba Tibetan autonomous area in September, which was part of a broader trip that he made to Chongqing and Sichuan province, the State Department spokesperson, Victoria Nuland, told reporters at her daily news conference.

"When he was in Aba, he met with a number of local residents, including ethnic Tibetans. He also visited villages and monasteries to learn more about how ethnic Tibetan people live and work and to have a chance to talk to them," Nuland said.

"I think you know that we have been very clear and very transparent with regard to our views on Tibet and our advocacy for better dialogue between the Chinese government and the Tibetan people on issues of concern and our grave concern about the rising number of self-immolations," she said.

The United States, she said, has grave concerns about human rights violations in Tibet.

"We have grave concerns about self-immolations in Tibet and about the underlying grievances that the Tibetan people have. And we have consistently urged dialogue between the Chinese government and the Tibetan people with regard to those grievances," she told reporters.