EU leaders under pressure over Chinese arms embargo

European leaders were under pressure today to delay plans for resuming weapons sales to China as Washington hardens opposition to ending the 15 year EU embargo in the wake of Beijing’s new law authorising a military attack on Taiwan.

Gathering for their two-day spring summit in Brussels, the 25 EU leaders were facing fire from both sides, after China reacted angrily to reports the bloc may put back its target for lifting the embargo beyond the end of June.

“The arms embargo against China is political discrimination, which is not in line with today’s reality,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said in Beijing.

Europe has long been divided over lifting the ban. France and Germany have led demands for it to go, calling the embargo a Cold War relic that holds back trade opportunities with China’s booming economy.

Britain, Sweden and others have been more reticent, citing continued human rights abuses and the threat to Taiwan. The US has lobbied strongly for the ban to stay, saying European weapons could destabilise east Asia and even threaten US forces in the Pacific.

However, the EU had appeared close to lifting the ban before last week’s passing of an anti-secession law by the Chinese parliament that authorises force against Taiwan if the island seeks formal independence.

China has made some concessions on human rights, including the release last week of a Muslim businesswoman who was jailed on national security charges and was the subject of appeals by Washington.

But British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said continued human rights problems and the new law on Taiwan, had ”created quite a difficult political environment” for the lifting of the embargo.

Other European officials have said lifting the embargo could be delayed because of failure to get agreement within the bloc for a series of safeguards to prevent a sudden, destabilising flood of European weapons or the export of high-tech arms.

“The latest developments have added complexity,” EU spokeswoman Cristina Gallach acknowledged ahead of the summit.

The Europeans are also worried about the level of opposition within the US. Diplomats admitted a mission to Washington last week to explain the proposed new safeguards had not been a success.