China in the Balance: Towards a Mature Relationship

Following the introduction of the new EU Code of Conduct on Arms Exports, the AIV believes the time has come to lift the arms embargo against China. The AIV recommends that the Netherlands lobby actively in the EU for the export ban to be lifted. Maintaining the embargo indefinitely is a form of conditionality that does not do justice to the spirit of partnership that has grown up between the parties concerned over the last twenty years. The effectiveness of the ban can also be called into question.