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US fury over EU weapons for China
The Telegraph (U.K.) ^ | 01/24/05 | Anton La Guardia

Posted on 01/14/2005 6:12:41 PM PST by Pokey78

America is waging an intense behind-the-scenes battle to stop the European Union lifting its 15-year-old arms embargo against China, warning Britain that it will not tolerate the prospect of European military technology being used to threaten its soldiers in the Far East.

As Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, prepares to travel to Beijing next week to discuss ending the arms ban, The Telegraph has learnt that the Bush administration is alarmed by Tony Blair's "cave-in" to French and German pressure.

Japan has also expressed dismay over the EU's move dramatically to upgrade relations with Beijing.

The Tories have warned the Government that it is creating a "major breach" with Washington and endangering vital exchanges of military technology between Britain and America.

Mr Straw told the House of Commons this week that the arms embargo, imposed on China after the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, would "more likely than not" be lifted by June.

The timing seems designed to avoid provoking a public row with President George W Bush before his fence-mending visit to Europe next month - including a stop in London.

It would also spare Britain the embarrassment of the EU lifting the ban during its presidency of the body in the second half of the year.

Mr Straw insists that a revised EU code of conduct on arms exports, coupled with a new "toolbox" of measures to exchange information on weapons sales, means that arms controls on China would remain as tight as under the embargo.

But America is deeply sceptical of such assurances, and well-placed sources are warning that the question of arms sales to China could explode into a new transatlantic row, more bitter even than the dispute over Iraq.

The US sees China as its main long-term rival for global dominance and is worried about possible military conflict over China's declared desire to re-assert control over Taiwan, which America has vowed to defend.

US officials argue that any easing of European arms control exports poses a threat to its soldiers.

But EU officials point out that Israel, one of America's closest allies, sells large amounts of weaponry to China.

American officials have told their British counterparts that even if the Bush administration keeps a measured tone, the response in Congress is likely to be heated.

One likely casualty would be Britain's long-standing attempt to secure a so-called "ITAR waiver" - a special exemption from complex US rules on the export of militarily -sensitive technology.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Germany; News/Current Events; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: china; eu; geopolitics; trade
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1 posted on 01/14/2005 6:12:41 PM PST by Pokey78
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To: Pokey78

The fruit of the Free Traders. Many of whom likely are EU stooges.


2 posted on 01/14/2005 6:15:21 PM PST by Paul Ross (Life is NOT like a box of chocolates...)
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To: Pokey78
The U.S. and Japan have every right to be concerned about this European nonsense.
3 posted on 01/14/2005 6:20:19 PM PST by snowsislander
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To: Pokey78

What's EU's idea ? Sell weapon = sell cloth ?

In fact they anti-U.S.


4 posted on 01/14/2005 6:30:22 PM PST by iso
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To: Pokey78
We should punish the Europeans severely in any way we can if they lift this ban. We should definitely stop selling any of our Military hardware to them if they do this. The same goes for the Israel if they start selling weapons to China.

China is a very real threat and we should take them very serious.
5 posted on 01/14/2005 6:34:21 PM PST by ThermoNuclearWarrior (PRESSURE BUSH TO CLOSE THE BORDERS!!!)
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To: ThermoNuclearWarrior

I'd like to start by cutting off aid to Israel. We should be making an example of out them.


6 posted on 01/14/2005 6:41:52 PM PST by Dr. Marten
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To: ThermoNuclearWarrior

Israel don't know why Iran and Pakistan take nuclear ?


7 posted on 01/14/2005 6:47:00 PM PST by iso
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To: Dr. Marten

We have a lot of influence on Israel and we can stop them from selling technology that we don't want to go to China. We won't have that kind of influence over the EU and you can bet that all kinds of highly sensitive technology will flow from Europe to China. This is more backstabbing from the French who don't value the NATO alliance and are always looking for new ways to enrich themselves, sometimes at the cost of American lives in combat. Screw France--it may be time to acknowledge the truth and kick them out of NATO.


8 posted on 01/14/2005 6:51:12 PM PST by carl in alaska (Once a Chargers fan, always a Chargers fan....)
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To: Pokey78

The first step in the end of NATO. I welcome it. No need to be allied to those who would take technologies like the JSF (which the british are a part of) and sell it to the chicoms.


9 posted on 01/14/2005 6:53:41 PM PST by Paul_Denton
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To: Paul_Denton

France must leave NATO .


10 posted on 01/14/2005 6:58:41 PM PST by iso
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To: Pokey78
I think we'll see more of this in the future- the EU undermining the security of the US. The french and the germans can't stand playing second fiddle to the US. They desperately want to be back on top of the world.
11 posted on 01/14/2005 6:58:50 PM PST by Moorings
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To: Pokey78

Before trying to impose our will on Europe, perhaps we should examine our own role of financially empowering them through trade policies. Is it possible we are helping them make the money to buy such things?


12 posted on 01/14/2005 7:00:06 PM PST by followerofchrist
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To: carl in alaska

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1319776/posts


13 posted on 01/14/2005 7:02:25 PM PST by Dr. Marten
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To: ThermoNuclearWarrior

"We should punish the Europeans severely in any way we can if they lift this ban.."

Start a war with Iran, and prevent any oil deliveries to Europe. That'll get their attention, and we can take care of Iran's nuclear program. 2-birds, one stone.


14 posted on 01/14/2005 7:04:35 PM PST by RFEngineer
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To: investigateworld

ping


15 posted on 01/14/2005 7:05:09 PM PST by srm913
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To: carl in alaska

France is not a member of NATO, something about bathing requirements.
(And frankly when I was a soldier, I wished they were a member of the Warsaw Pact. They don't have the best record for winning wars)


16 posted on 01/14/2005 7:16:05 PM PST by investigateworld
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To: investigateworld

We don't share anything with the French.


17 posted on 01/14/2005 7:21:22 PM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (Any team that would fire # 68, Mike Morris, has no chance at going to the Super Bowl.)
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To: Pokey78

"But EU officials point out that Israel, one of America's closest allies, sells large amounts of weaponry to China."

This is actually true, and Israel sells OUR military tech to china (patriot tech, anyone?)

I am surprised Israel gets a pass in our media over this, given how anti-israeli the media seems to be otherwise.


18 posted on 01/14/2005 7:22:48 PM PST by WoofDog123
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To: WoofDog123

It does seems hard to blame the EU if China is going to get it anyway from Israel. They may see themselves as odd-man out in a situation of rhetoric not matching actions.

Is Israel just laundering so-to-speak our military sales for our suppliers while we keep others out of the market with the ban?

We may just have to jump in with both feet ourselves in terms of sales to China and when China starts to become too scary then the EU will feel they need the U.S. once again.

Boeing sold airplane technology to Japan right up almost to the outbreak of war in WWII. We then faced this very same technology in the Pacific war.

When does Condolezza get confirmed?


19 posted on 01/14/2005 8:01:06 PM PST by baseball_fan (Thank you Vets)
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To: Pokey78

If the EU does lift the embargo, I see no need for NATO and we should encourage the Russians to put a stop to EU expansion-by any means necessary.


20 posted on 01/14/2005 8:09:17 PM PST by JeffersonRepublic.com (The 51st state is right around the corner.)
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