U.S. CAUTIONS EUROPE AGAINST LIFTING ARMS EMBARGO AGAINST CHINA
Central News Agency
2005-06-01 23:44:11
Washington, June 1 (CNA) U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns urged Europe last week not to affect the military balance between China and the United States, particularly concerning the Taiwan Strait, in a negative way by lifting its arms embargo on China.
Burns made the remarks at the Transatlantic Democracy Network Conference in Brussels, Belgium on May 26. The text of his remarks was released by the State Department in Washington, D. C., Tuesday.
Burns said the United States has an interest in maintaining a peaceful relationship with China, but it also has a competitive relationship, certainly in trade with China, and the United States also has major grievances concerning human rights with China itself and a lack of democratization in that country.
Noting that managing its relationship with a rising China and continuing to ensure stability and peace in East Asia is a major American preoccupation, the U.S. undersecretary said at the center of the U.S. argument against Europe's lifting of the arms ban on China is that America has security commitments in Asia just as it has in Europe, and Europe's lifting of the arms embargo would unduly affect in a negative way the military balance in Asia.
Burns said his country understands the motivations of the European Union, but the United States cannot accept that Europe would move forward when they are allied partners and they have such profound security interests in East Asia.
The U.S. official said the United States would like to see a more outward-looking Europe that will work with the United States in the promotion of democracy in Asia, and in trying to ensure stability in Asia.
The Europe Union, which mulled the possibility of ending the arms embargo, decided to shelf the idea for the time being because of Washington's opposition.
(By Oliver Lin & Maubo Chang)
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