China Arms Embargo

Re “China Embargo Divides Allies,” (Feb. 27): The European Union intends to lift the arms embargo it put in place against China after the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. Since that time, however, human rights in China have not improved.

The international community should strongly oppose the lifting of the ban. The stakes of China’s military gaining even more strength are enormous. It would tilt the balance of power across the Taiwan Strait and lead to possible armed conflict. The EU has stated that the Code of Conduct governing sales to China will alleviate this possibility. However, it should be pointed out that the code is nonbinding and provides no security guarantees.

Regional peace and stability will be strengthened immeasurably when the flow of high-tech military hardware is kept out of China’s hands, especially as it targets Taiwan.

Monina DeVeyra

Glendale