U.S. WELCOMES GERMAN MINISTER'S COMMENTS ON E.U.'S ARMS EMBARGO
ROC News Agency
2005-04-15 15:35:43
Washington, April 14 (CNA) U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Thursday that the German foreign minister's recent statement on the European Union position regarding its arms sales policy toward China is "positive" and that Washington is pleased to see European openness in discussing the issue.
Rice was responding to a reporter's question after her meeting with Indian Minister of External Affairs Natwar Singh. She was asked to respond to the German foreign minister's statement Thursday that the European Union will not proceed with plans to lift its arms embargo against China unless it sees concrete steps from Beijing on Taiwan and human rights.
Rice said that it is a "positive statement" because the United States has been very concerned about a lifting of the E.U. embargo as it would send the wrong message on human rights, given that it was imposed in response to the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.
The United States has been concerned about the possibility of the E.U. lifting the embargo also because it could make technologies available to China's military which could in turn threaten U.S. security interests in Asia, not to mention the security interests of U.S. allies in the region, she said. "We have been pleased at the openness of the Europeans in discussing this," she added.
In addition to U.S. responsibility for security in the Asia-Pacific region, Rice also pointed to U.S. concerns regarding China's anti-secession law which she said "did nothing to reduce tensions in the Taiwan Strait." In fact, she added, that law "increased tensions in the Taiwan Strait."
She reiterated that lifting the E.U. arms embargo would be a mistake.
(By Oliver Lin/S.C. Chang)
ENDITEM/Li
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