BEIJING, Jan. 21 (UPI) -- British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw urged Europe to end its arms embargo against China during a visit to Beijing.
Straw said arms embargoes have been issued against China, Zimbabwe and Burma but not North Korea, which has an appalling human rights record.
The EU ban was imposed after the Chinese army gunned down protesters at Tiananmen Square in 1989. Most European countries now support lifting the ban, despite pressure from the United States and Japan.
Washington has expressed concern the move would lead to an escalation of tensions between China and Taiwan, but China says it sees the decision as a political one and does not intend to buy more weapons.
Straw, appearing at a joint news conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing Thursday, said lifting the embargo "should not (lead to) an increase in arms exports from European Union member states to China, either in quantitative or qualitative terms."
Earlier this week he said he expected the embargo to be lifted within six months.
