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French Defense Minister Michèle Alliot-Marie said lifting an international arms embargo against China was justified because the context had changed and an increasing number of countries support an end to the sanction.
Speaking before the European-American Press association here Feb. 3, Alliot-Marie said the partial embargo ? the ban applied only to ?lethal weapons? ? was imposed some 15 years ago in a ?highly specific context? and that the diplomatic and economic context has changed, including relations between China and the United States.
China has made every effort to integrate itself in the world community and the embargo sends the wrong political signal to Beijing, she said. Moreover, an embargo was not necessarily the most effective means of control arms sales, France had the strictest system weapons export control, and each purchase was vetted in its regional context, she said.
Latest available official figures showed France is the third-largest arms exporter, behind Britain and the United States, with average annual sales of 5 billion euros ($6 billion).
An increasing number of countries support ending the embargo, Alliot-Marie said.
The European Union imposed the sanction in 1989 after the Tiananmen Square massacre, in which government forces gunned down pro-democracy protestors.
The United States and Japan oppose ending the embargo, fearing it would exacerbate regional tension, and human rights groups say Beijing?s record does not justify lifting the arm sales ban.
On the subject of nuclear proliferation, France was extremely concerned about Iran?s development of nuclear weapons, and Paris would use its political leverage in energy matters and development aid to ensure inspections were carried out, Alliot-Marie said.
?The big problem is one of trust,? she said, adding that Tehran did not trust European governments to keep their commitments it opened up to inspection.
Shifting to European industry, Alliot-Marie also said she expected a restructuring in naval shipbuilding would take three years to complete, with the first steps having been taken through national consolidation in Germany and Spain.
A merger of Thales? naval business with that of state-owned DCN was a step in the consolidation process, to confront competition from Southeast Asian yards, she said.
A similar restructuring in the land systems sector could take five years, for which the French government is backing state-owned GIAT Industries, she said.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?F=635417&C=europe
Thats a very good step to normalize the tensions between China and Europeon Countries.And it will also help to normalize the situations in south east Asian Countries.
Speaking before the European-American Press association here Feb. 3, Alliot-Marie said the partial embargo ? the ban applied only to ?lethal weapons? ? was imposed some 15 years ago in a ?highly specific context? and that the diplomatic and economic context has changed, including relations between China and the United States.
China has made every effort to integrate itself in the world community and the embargo sends the wrong political signal to Beijing, she said. Moreover, an embargo was not necessarily the most effective means of control arms sales, France had the strictest system weapons export control, and each purchase was vetted in its regional context, she said.
Latest available official figures showed France is the third-largest arms exporter, behind Britain and the United States, with average annual sales of 5 billion euros ($6 billion).
An increasing number of countries support ending the embargo, Alliot-Marie said.
The European Union imposed the sanction in 1989 after the Tiananmen Square massacre, in which government forces gunned down pro-democracy protestors.
The United States and Japan oppose ending the embargo, fearing it would exacerbate regional tension, and human rights groups say Beijing?s record does not justify lifting the arm sales ban.
On the subject of nuclear proliferation, France was extremely concerned about Iran?s development of nuclear weapons, and Paris would use its political leverage in energy matters and development aid to ensure inspections were carried out, Alliot-Marie said.
?The big problem is one of trust,? she said, adding that Tehran did not trust European governments to keep their commitments it opened up to inspection.
Shifting to European industry, Alliot-Marie also said she expected a restructuring in naval shipbuilding would take three years to complete, with the first steps having been taken through national consolidation in Germany and Spain.
A merger of Thales? naval business with that of state-owned DCN was a step in the consolidation process, to confront competition from Southeast Asian yards, she said.
A similar restructuring in the land systems sector could take five years, for which the French government is backing state-owned GIAT Industries, she said.
http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?F=635417&C=europe
Thats a very good step to normalize the tensions between China and Europeon Countries.And it will also help to normalize the situations in south east Asian Countries.