Barack Obama first met the Dalai Lama when he was a US Senator, and they have met twice in the White House. In September 2009, President Obama sent his Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett to Dharamsala, India, to personally deliver an invitation to meet after the President’s November 2009 trip to China. Since 1991, the International Campaign for Tibet has assisted with the Dalai Lama’s visits to Washington, DC and hosted him for official meetings. To learn more about the presidential meetings, see ICT: US Presidential Statements on meetings with the Dalai Lama, 1991-2011.