[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 512 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. CON. RES. 512

 Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the European Union's plans 
  to lift the embargo on arms sales to the People's Republic of China.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 7, 2004

Mr. Chabot (for himself and Mr. Brown of Ohio) submitted the following 
     concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
  International Relations, and in addition to the Committee on Armed 
Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
   each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of Congress regarding the European Union's plans 
  to lift the embargo on arms sales to the People's Republic of China.

Whereas leaders of the European Union and the People's Republic of China will 
        meet in December 2004 in the Hague, the Netherlands, to discuss lifting 
        the European Union's embargo on arms sales to the People's Republic of 
        China;
Whereas the European Union initiated a ban on arms sales to the People's 
        Republic of China after the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre;
Whereas the ban has remained in force due to China's continued violation of 
        human rights;
Whereas the ban displays the European Union's ongoing dissatisfaction with the 
        pace of political reform in China and the continued repression of 
        dissent by China's authoritarian government;
Whereas 14 years after the 1989 prodemocracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square, 
        many protesters still remain in prison and have not received a fair 
        trial;
Whereas according to the annual human rights reports of the United States 
        Department of State and various international human rights 
        organizations, the Government of the People's Republic of China 
        continues to commit human rights abuse against its own people;
Whereas lifting the European Union embargo on arms sales to the People's 
        Republic of China will result in the increased procurement of arms by 
        the People's Republic of China;
Whereas the United States shares defense technology with the European Union in 
        order to enhance the interoperability between the two military powers;
Whereas lifting the embargo will render it impossible to guarantee that the 
        military technology that the United States shares with Europe will not 
        be passed on to the People's Republic of China;
Whereas the Taiwan Strait is one of the flashpoints in the world, and a conflict 
        in the region will involve United States forces; and
Whereas the military balance between Taiwan and the People's Republic of China 
        continues to shift in favor of the People's Republic of China, as 
        documented in recent reports from the Pentagon and in the June 2004 
        report by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),  
That it is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) the President should seek a commitment from the leaders 
        of the European Union that the European Union will not lift its 
        embargo on arms sales to the People's Republic of China; and
            (2) the 2005 annual report by the Department of Defense on 
        the military power of the People's Republic of China required 
        by section 1202 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
        Fiscal Year 2000 (10 U.S.C. 113 note) should include--
                    (A) an analysis of the effect on United States 
                interests in the Asia-Pacific region if the European 
                Union lifts its embargo on arms sales to the People's 
                Republic of China; and
                    (B) a review of the steps taken by the United 
                States to address such action by the European Union.
                                 <all>