DHAKA: US President Barack Obama called the Dalai Lama a "good friend" and an inspiration for freedom.

The president said this on Thursday which reports the Times of India.

Speaking at a closely watched prayer event in Washington with the lama in the audience, Obama said Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader was “a powerful example of what it means to practice compassion and who inspires us to speak up for the freedom and dignity of all human beings.”

BDST: 0945 HRS, FEB 06, 2015