The EU is aiming to lift its 15-year-old arms embargo to China
by the end of June, the organization's Council of Ministers said on
Saturday.
Nicolas Kerlerous, spokesperson for external relations, security
and defense policy, told Xinhua that the EU "has an objective to
lift the embargo during the first half of next year" but warned
that achieving this "can never be guaranteed."
Kerlerous' comment confirms the implications of a concluding
document from the EU leaders' summit, which ended on Friday.
The document said they "invited the next Presidency (Luxembourg)
to finalize the well-balanced work in order to allow for a decision
(on revising the EU's Code of Conduct on arms exports)."
Luxembourg's presidency runs from January 1 to June 30 2005.
"This is a strong indication (of the EU's intention to work
towards lifting the embargo)... And it further proves the 'positive
signal' on the arms embargo the EU expressed during the EU-China
summit in The Hague," Kerlerous said.
During the leaders summit, they stressed that the lifting of the
arms ban should not result in an increase, either quantitative or
qualitative, in weapons sales to China.
The leaders also stressed the importance of the EU Code of
Conduct on arms exports, in particular, "criteria regarding human
rights, stability and security in the region and the national
security of friendly and allied countries."
Premier Wen
Jiabao said earlier in December that China's appeal for lifting
the arms embargo did not mean it was eager to buy weapons from EU
countries. Wen claimed the ban discriminates against a strategic
partnership based on the principles of mutual respect, equality and
reciprocity.
(China Daily December 20, 2004)