Lifting the Chinese Arms Embargo
American Future blog
By Marc Schulman on European Union
The Times (UK) has come out against lifting the Chinese arms embargo:
timesonline.co.uk
The EU is currently moving towards lifting the arms embargo imposed on China immediately after the Tiananmen Square massacre. It believes this move would help further to bring China into the global community, and recognise it does not harbour hostile intentions towards its neighbours; rather less piously, a number of large EU nations, notably France, have identified a lucrative export market for their weapons.
It is entirely possible that removing the arms embargo would have limited consequences. The issue is, nevertheless, viewed differently in Washington, not only by the Administration but Congress and not just by conservative Republicans but also liberal Democrats. The probably slim chance that US troops defending Taiwan might be attacked by an army which had acquired its arms from the EU fills policymakers in America with horror. It would be sensible for Europe, led by Britain, to recognise this fear and avoid a course which the US considers a threat to its security. If not, then Dr Rice’s tours of Europe will be become rarer and less friendly.
As does The Telegraph (UK):
telegraph.co.uk
The EU's desire to lift its arms embargo on Beijing is not simply of symbolic importance. China wants weapons in order to use them. Almost every contiguous state has, at one time or another, felt the force of Chinese expansionism: Korea, Russia, Mongolia, Tibet, India and Vietnam.
The current target of its aggression, Taiwan, is defended by US warships, and Washington is understandably furious at the prospect of its sailors facing weapons made in Europe. Yet, even here, it is possible that at least some Europeans will be won round by Miss Rice's moral case. China, after all, still has a totalitarian regime. The idealistic activists who marched in European cities against Tiananmen and the despoliation of Tibet may yet find themselves carrying the Stars and Stripes. |
