EU misses point on China arms, says US

sweetheart

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 08:27 PM
Original message

EU misses point on China arms, says US

Edited on Wed Jan-19-05 08:44 PM by sweetheart

Efforts by Jack Straw, UK foreign secretary, to play down transatlantic tensions over European Union plans to lift an arms embargo on China were called into question on Monday as a senior US official rejected his suggestion that Washington misunderstood the proposal.
ADVERTISEMENT

The official said the EU was underestimating the strength of feeling in Washington over arms sales to Beijing. “A failure to understand the significance of this issue is going to result in major problems for transatlantic arms procurement,” he warned.

Washington's concerns, felt most strongly in the defence department and among conservatives in Congress, are that increased European arms sales could help China in a possible future confrontation with the US over Taiwan. European officials hope that Washington's opposition will be softened by changes within the new Bush administration, including the imminent departure of hawk John Bolton as US undersecretary of state for arms control.

http://news.ft.com/cms/s/7b619d0a-6a63-11d9-858c-00000e2511c8.html

This is the "war" disagreement.... here... the neocons unilateralism
against "trust".

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

David__77

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 08:45 PM
Response to Original message

1. They can get better arms from Russia anyway...

...either way, China will surely emerge as a pole in a new multipolar world order. Even the US spies know this. The question is, will they be a strategic partner as envisioned by Clinton and Jiang Zemin, or will they be a "competitor" as imagined by Bush. As competitors go, China could be quite formidable.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

yinkaafrica

(535 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 08:48 PM
Response to Reply #1

2. The sleeping giant has turned her attention toward oil and weapons

This cannot be good for a US 'led' by Bush.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

yinkaafrica

(535 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 08:49 PM
Response to Reply #1

3. Why don't they make their own weapons?

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

ckramer

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 08:51 PM
Response to Reply #3

4. Their weapons are all stocked up in Walmart

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

da_chimperor

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 09:26 PM
Response to Reply #3

6. They do. Lots and lots of them. They also buy from the Russians.

They also tend to buy the designs from Russia, tweak them, and produce them on their own. A lot Chinese military equipment is simply tweaked copies of Russian stuff. The capsule that the Chinese used to send their taikonaut into space with was a modified copy of a Russian design.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

GHOSTDANCER

(550 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Wed Jan-19-05 09:20 PM
Response to Original message

5. Sell arms to OUR customer, how dare you, them is fightin words pilgrim.

Fuq, look at em, like god damn crack whores, the whole lot of em!

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

sweetheart

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Jan-20-05 05:36 AM
Response to Reply #5

7. really is like that

It seems if it does not eminate from the neocons, then it isn't about
"democracy"... and given what these chaps think democracy is, its no
wonder.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Stella_Artois

(838 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Jan-20-05 05:46 AM
Response to Original message

8. What could these be ?

Edited on Thu Jan-20-05 05:50 AM by Stella_Artois

American designed Blackhawk helicopter in Chinese service ?

http://www.sinodefence.com/airforce/aircraft/helicopter/s70.asp

Israeli "Lavi" jet fighter produced in China as the J-10 ? An aircraft designed in Israel with $1.5 billion of US aid ?

http://www.ishitech.co.il/0402ar5.htm

Surely not !

Methinks someone is missing the point, but he's in Washington. In fact, i don't think he even knows what the point is.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

neweurope

(1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Jan-20-05 05:55 AM
Response to Original message

9. "European arms sales could help China in a possible future

confrontation with the US over Taiwan." Now that's pretty outspoken, isn't it?

I go to bed scared and wake up scared these days. :scared:

-----------------

Remember Fallujah

Bush to The Hague!

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

Stella_Artois

(838 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore

Thu Jan-20-05 06:41 AM
Response to Reply #9

10. The nerve of these people

Edited on Thu Jan-20-05 07:00 AM by Stella_Artois

US arms sales to China are already helping them suppress the people of Tibet, among other places.

Printer Friendly | Permalink | | Top

DU AdBot (1000+ posts)

Sat May 11th 2024, 03:49 PM
Response to Original message

Advertisements [?]

Top

Powered by DCForum+ Version 1.1 Copyright 1997-2002 DCScripts.com
Software has been extensively modified by the DU administrators

Important Notices: By participating on this discussion board, visitors agree to abide by the rules outlined on our Rules page. Messages posted on the Democratic Underground Discussion Forums are the opinions of the individuals who post them, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Democratic Underground, LLC.