[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 356 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 356

 Urging the European Union and its member states to maintain the arms 
            embargo against the People's Republic of China.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 18, 2011

 Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mr. Burton of Indiana, Mr. Meeks, Mr. 
   Royce, Mr. McCotter, Mr. Gallegly, Mr. Chabot, Ms. Jackson Lee of 
 Texas, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Calvert, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, and Mr. 
Ryan of Ohio) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                    the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Urging the European Union and its member states to maintain the arms 
            embargo against the People's Republic of China.

Whereas, on June 4, 1989, the People's Republic of China carried out a brutal 
        and indiscriminate assault on thousands of peaceful and unarmed 
        demonstrators and bystanders in and around Tiananmen Square by units of 
        the People's Liberation Army, which resulted in an untold number of 
        deaths and several thousand injuries;
Whereas, on June 26, 1989, in Madrid, the European Council issued a declaration 
        that strongly condemned ``the brutal repression taking place in China'' 
        and introduced an embargo on trade in arms with the People's Republic of 
        China;
Whereas the People's Republic of China has yet to acknowledge or make amends for 
        the 1989 massacre of the peaceful, pro-democracy demonstrators at 
        Tiananmen Square;
Whereas the citizens of the People's Republic of China still do not have the 
        right to peacefully change their government and many who openly express 
        dissenting political views are harassed, detained, or imprisoned;
Whereas for several years, the People's Republic of China has also been engaged 
        in an extensive military buildup in its air, naval, land, and outer 
        space systems, including the deployment of approximately 1,600 short and 
        medium range ballistic missiles near the Taiwan Strait according to the 
        Department of Defense's Report on the Military Power of the People's 
        Republic of China for Fiscal Year 2009;
Whereas the military buildup by the People's Republic of China and the strategic 
        doctrines that underpin such actions remain shrouded in secrecy and 
        imply challenges for strategic deterrence between the United States and 
        China, United States Armed Forces deployed in the region, and interests 
        related to numerous friends and allies in the region, particularly 
        Taiwan and Japan, and regional stability more broadly;
Whereas the transfer of armaments and related military technology to the 
        People's Republic of China by member states of the European Union (EU) 
        threatens to encourage the People's Republic of China to seek to 
        continue its attempts to settle long-standing territorial disputes in 
        the region by the threat or use of military force;
Whereas in order to assist EU member-states to close the gap in defense 
        capabilities with the United States and to enhance the interoperability 
        of the armed forces of EU member states and United States Armed Forces, 
        the United States has expanded transatlantic armament and defense 
        industry cooperation involving increasingly sophisticated levels of 
        sensitive United States military technology, which becomes subject to 
        increased risk of diversion to the People's Republic of China should the 
        arms embargo be lifted and armament cooperation increase between China 
        and the EU;
Whereas the European Parliament previously reaffirmed support for the arms 
        embargo against the People's Republic of China, stating explicitly that 
        ``Chinese and other arms exporters are fueling armed conflicts in Africa 
        . . . China is responsible for significant arms transfers to conflict-
        ridden countries, even in violation of UN embargoes in the cases of 
        Darfur, Liberia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo'';
Whereas the People's Republic of China continues to export gas and oil, as well 
        as defense-related material to the Iranian regime, despite international 
        concern over Iran's nuclear programs;
Whereas in January 2010, Spanish Ambassador to China, Carlos Blasco Villa, 
        stated that Spain hoped to ``deepen discussions [in Europe] on lifting 
        the ban,'' and added that Spain ``seeks to eliminate any inconvenience 
        in relationships between the EU and China'';
Whereas, on December 17, 2010, EU High Representative Catherine Ashton 
        recommended lifting the EU arms embargo on China in her formal foreign 
        policy strategy paper to the European Summit, in which she stated, ``The 
        current arms embargo is a major impediment for developing stronger EU-
        China co-operation on foreign policy and security matters. The EU should 
        assess its practical implication and design a way forward.'';
Whereas, during his May 2011 visit to China, European Council President Herman 
        Van Rompuy stated, ``China made a significant contribution to 
        maintaining the stability of the euro zone and promoting the resurgence 
        of the European economy. Europe shows gratitude for this . . . I come 
        here not just for what we can do for our bilateral relations but also 
        for what we can do together on a global level.''; and
Whereas the United States Department of State's 2010 Country Report on Human 
        Rights for China stated that, ``A negative trend in key areas of the 
        country's human rights record continued . . . . Principal human rights 
        problems during the year included: extrajudicial killings . . . enforced 
        disappearance and incommunicado detention . . . torture and coerced 
        confessions of prisoners . . . detention and harassment of journalists 
        and dissidents . . . political control of courts and judges . . . 
        restrictions on freedoms to assemble, practice religion, and travel . . 
        . pressure on other countries to forcibly return citizens to China . . . 
        a coercive birth limitation policy, which in some cases resulted in 
        forced abortion or forced sterilization . . . trafficking in persons . . 
        . and the use of forced labor, including prison labor . . . .'': Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) reaffirms the United States arms embargo on the 
        People's Republic of China and related findings and statements 
        of policy set forth in title IX of the Foreign Relations 
        Authorization Act (Public Law 101-246);
            (2) calls upon the President of the United States, 
        consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act, to clarify his policy 
        towards Taiwan and to publically reaffirm United States support 
        for its allies in the region;
            (3) expresses its concerns over the continuing harassment, 
        repression, and detention of political dissidents, religious, 
        and ethnic minorities inside the People's Republic of China;
            (4) reasserts that it should be the policy of the United 
        States to oppose any diminution or termination of the European 
        Union arms embargo against the People's Republic of China that 
        was established by the Declaration of the European Council of 
        June 26, 1989;
            (5) condemns the threats of military force by China against 
        its neighbors to resolve longstanding conflicts; and
            (6) urges the President of the United States to take 
        appropriate diplomatic and other measures necessary to convince 
        European Union member-states, individually and collectively, to 
        continue to observe this embargo in principle and in practice.
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