Germany on Monday reiterated its position that the European
Union (EU) should lift the embargo on arms sales to China.
Germany has noted the changes in China since 1989, when the
25-member bloc imposed the ban, said deputy government spokesman
Thomas Steg. The German government believes that the time has come
for the EU to discuss the lifting of the arms ban and seek "a new
solution" to the issue.
EU foreign ministers plan to review the issue at a September
meeting, demanded during the Brussels EU summit last month.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder urged the EU to remove the
arms embargo when he visited China last December, making Germany
the second major EU country advocating it along with France.
(Xinhua News Agency July 6, 2004)