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| East Asia |
| EU May Lift Ban on Arms Sales to China |
| 2004-01-24 |
| BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - The European Union may end its ban on arms sales to China this spring, diplomatic sources said Friday, a move that could allow China’s big-spending military to buy cutting-edge weapons ranging from French Mirage jets to stealthy German submarines. At a meeting Monday, the EU foreign ministers will debate the issue but not make a formal announcement, said the officials. "It will take a few months," said one EU diplomat close to the negotiations. Everything takes a few months in the EU. Europe imposed the ban on weapons sales after Beijing’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989. The guy who stood in front of that tank is still dead. But EU spokeswoman Emma Udwin said there had been a "shift of mood" in European capitals, although some opposition remained. "There is clear pressure from China to get the arms embargo lifted," Udwin said. And clear pressure from France and Germay to sell arms. The foreign ministers of the 15 EU nations - and the 10 countries joining the bloc in May - have agreed to re-examine the embargo, said French foreign ministry spokesman Herve Ladsous in Paris. "No one is really opposed to this objective," he added. Proponents of ending the ban say there will still be the EU’s Code of Conduct for arms sales to act as a safety net. The code forces EU nations to ensure the arms they sell are not used for internal repression, external aggression or where serious violations of human rights have occurred. EU Code of Conduct? The one that keeps their MP’s from looting the treasury or the one that forces the governments to keep their deficits within the required range? The EU view has long been that China must significantly improve its human rights record before the arms embargo can be lifted. However, last fall, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, on a visit to China, said France and Germany wanted the embargo gone. Desparate for exports, are we? The Netherlands and Scandinavian nations lead opposition to ending the arms ban, along with the European Parliament. For its part, however, China responded by saying relations with the EU "now are better than any time in history" and that ending the arms ban can only make things better. Selling arms to thugs always makes things better. For the thugs, that is. |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #6 "No one is really opposed to this objective," ...couple of lines later: The Netherlands and Scandinavian nations lead opposition to ending the arms ban, along with the European Parliament... So I guess Herve Ladsous is right, no one is really opposing. |
| Posted by: Rafael 2004-1-24 3:21:12 PM |
| #5 Chiraq and Co. have finally realized that their ME markets are drying up and despite all the artifical sweeteners their foreign ministry-types have applied to the US, they have and will be locked out of the ME picture. Now China wants to buy. China sees it as an opportunity to get arms it needs and to drive a wedge between the US and the EU. The EU sees it as a wedge to get at the US and to get foreign exchange. Perfect fit. As far as that poor chap who faced accelerated depreciation under the Tieneman Tank, he's yesterday's roadkill. It is sickening. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-1-24 2:03:37 PM |
| #4 It will be interesting to see whether their capability improves when they buy actual Western weapons instead of 'improving' Russian designs. The gear that they had developped outs USA plans obtained by spying and/or reverse engineering is soso. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-1-24 1:35:21 PM |
| #2 As Mssrs. Penis-wrinkles Chirac and de villepin have said, it is their desire to create a multi-polar world to counter America. If that 'pole' is China, so be it. On the other hand, if they wish to sell the Chicoms euro hardware, I'm all for it. Hopefully the chicoms won't realize it's obsolete until it's too late. |
| Posted by: 4thInfVet 2004-1-24 1:10:10 AM |
| #1 This has all the earmarks of a foreign policy coming back to bite its owners in the ass. |
| Posted by: Val 2004-1-24 1:03:54 AM |