The European Union nations on Friday failed to agree on lifting
their 15-year-old ban on arms sales to China.
German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said foreign ministers
at their meeting in Luxembourg failed to generate "a consensus" on
the issue.
He said the 25-nation EU would keep the issue under study and
step up discussions with the United States.
The proposal to lift the arms embargo has put trans-Atlantic
ties under renewed strain, with the United States voicing strong
opposition to the action.
Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden want to retain the
arms ban, while Germany and France have long urged fellow EU
members to lift the embargo.
Earlier, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Qin Gang says the
EU arms embargo on China is obsolete.
He notes the key to lifting the ban is to eradicate political
discrimination against China, which won't lead to China's
large-scale weapons procurement.
"China and the European Union have established a comprehensive
strategic partnership. If the EU maintains the discriminative
embargo on China, it won't benefit China-EU relations to move
forward smoothly. We hope the EU can take the overall situation
into account and lift the arms ban as soon as possible," said
Qin.
The issue of lifting EU's arms ban on China has been under
active consideration by the EU since December 2002.
Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn says the European
Union's leadership still hopes the bloc can lift its arms embargo
on China by June.
Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, whose country
currently holds the 25-country bloc's presidency, made this comment
on the sidelines of two days of informal talks with his EU
counterparts.
He noted EU ministers need to find a solution on lifting the ban
"with a consensus" and said the EU should boost its strategic ties
with China to tackle global challenges.
EU leaders last December asked their foreign ministers to work
toward lifting the ban by this June, when Luxembourg hands over the
EU presidency to Britain.
In a related development, spokesman of EU's General Affairs and
External Relations Nicolas Kerleroux said the EU is committed to
removing the arms embargo on China, but there is no timetable on
this matter.
He also indicated the EU will soon endorse a binding code of
conduct on arms sales, which is stricter and more comprehensive
than the arm embargo.
(CRI, Xinhua News Agency April 17, 2005)