The European Union is considering lifting its arms embargo
The European Union is considering lifting its arms embargo against China, which has been in place since the Tiananmen Square incident in 1989, next year. We are very concerned about this.
It would mean even more of a headache for Japan, as it would present a serious security problem for the nation.
Over the past year, China has been making moves that pose a threat to Japan's security.
The EU is considering lifting the ban because ties between it and China have improved over recent years. Immediately after the Tiananmen Square incident, the EU's relationship with China cooled over the latter's infringements of human rights. However, it has been improving gradually to a level where in 1998 they began holding regular summit meetings.
Their relations have become closer, particularly in trading. China is the second-largest trade partner for the EU, while the EU is the biggest for China. Between last year and this year, the leaders of Britain, Germany, France and Italy -- core members of the EU -- visited China in succession because they all wanted a slice of the Chinese market.
Given these circumstances, Beijing said the continued improvement of these ties would be impaired if the arms embargo was maintained, increasing pressure on the EU to lift it. On the EU side, some countries, particularly Germany and France, were in favor of lifting the embargo.
The EU is an important player in international politics. It should refrain from pursuing its own economic interests at the expense of causing instability in Asia. -- The Yomiuri Shimbun, Tokyo.
;; ANPAk..r.. OtherOp-Dec 15, 2004 Identity test for WTO
THE European Union's nomination this week of the well-regarded French trade diplomat, Mr Pascal Lamy, to head the World Trade Organisation opens up intriguing possibilities. First off, the question of personalities tied up with intra-regional political rivalries could come back to haunt the organisation. The last leadership contest pitted Asia against the United States and a number of Western nations. It was a bruising fight which wounded the WTO to an extent never publicly acknowledged. Second, the new head will face an enormous challenge bringing focus back to an organisation that has had some of its thunder stolen by pro- active member nations which obviously place more faith in regional and nation-to-nation trade agreements than the WTO's promised omnibus Doha Round. This is a WTO failing. It is guilty, but responsibility rests primarily at the door of regional power blocs, principally the US and the EU, for their distorting farm support. In short, the new chief would have to reassert the WTO's primacy in overseeing international trade if it is not to drift into irrelevance.
In the nomination round, Mr Lamy is likely to face off rivals from South America and Mauritius who have not been named. He looks like a runaway favourite as he has worked for universalism in trade while ably advancing Europe's interests as the EU trade commissioner. But having the EU's imprimatur could also work against him. Might the US play a spoiler's role by re-enacting its squabble with France and Germany prior to the Iraq invasion, and campaign against Mr Lamy? In the last contest the US-backed Mr Mike Moore of New Zealand and Asia's candidate, Dr Supachai Panitchpakdi of Thailand, wound up sharing the six-term tenure as a compromise. But the campaign sniping and accusations traded about suspect open-trade credentials and US bully tactics did much to chip away at the WTO's mandate in acting as an honest broker in trade issues. The hope must be that the new director- general will be chosen in a manner free of rancour. The candidature cannot become a surrogate for nationalistic drum- beating. The new head will need all the support he can muster to steer the WTO towards a conclusion of the Doha Round by the end of next year. Dr Supachai's term ends in August next year. By then, the WTO could be sorely tested adjudicating over the remains of the lapsed Multi-Fibre Agreement. -- The Straits Times