US threatens Europe with sanctions over arms to China.

[spanone]

I guess we are the worlds police. Our way or the fucking highway.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/eu/story/0,7369,1429309,00.html

<snip> America and Europe were yesterday being drawn ever closer into a trade war after senior US congressman issued a blunt warning to the EU over its plans to lift a 15-year-old arms embargo on China.
Talking explicitly about how it would retaliate for the first time, Richard Lugar, the powerful republican head of the Senate foreign relations committee, warned that the US would stop sales of military technology to Europe.

His Democratic counterpart, Senator Joseph Biden, warned that the lifting of the ban would be "a non-starter with Congress". Their tough words came after a meeting with President George Bush in the White House <snip>

[bpilgrim]

1. "US would stop sales of military technology to Europe" there goes our $$$

would the elite put our No.#1 export in jeopardy? :shrug:

peace

[DBoon]

4. They would just have to build their own

No problem, as they have an educated and highly skilled workforce.

They built the latest interplanetary probe - they can certainly build weapons systems as well as the US.

[bpilgrim]

7. High-tech weapons help Europe to close military gap with US

March 02, 2005
By Anthony Browne, Brussels Correspondent

THE European Union is to develop unmanned drones, new armoured vehicles and advanced communication systems in a strategy to become a military superpower and close the defence technology gap with the United States. The programme involves setting up a joint EU fighter-pilot training programme and co-ordinating the testing of military equipment on proving grounds and in wind tunnels.

The initiatives from the newly-created European Defence Agency represent the EU’s first step in military research and development. They are aimed at transforming the EU from being solely a political power, in charge of policies such as agriculture and trade, to a military one, capable of sending troops around the world to enforce a foreign policy agreed by its member states.

The strategy has proved controversial to EU members such as the Irish Republic and Sweden, who fear that their traditional neutrality is being threatened, as well as in Britain, where there has been concern that it will undermine Nato and its close military relationship with the United States.

Nick Witney, the British chief executive of the European Defence Agency, set up last month, explained his plans to boost Europe’s “defence, technological and industrial base” by co-ordinating the military activity of EU members.

“Europe does not have the defence capabilities that it ought to. I want to see what we can do to get more bang for the buck than is already provided and I am sure we can go a long way applying all the separate defence lines across Europe more coherently,” he said.

more...
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13509-1506532,00.html

peace

[98geoduck]

12. Didn't Europe just get a contract to build * a new helicopter?

I was doubting Hersh's warning about a feud with Europe, but stuff like this just keeps popping it's ugly head up.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

2. But it's o.k that the U.S sells weapons to Pakistan, the number 1...

terrorist supporting nation (Saudi Arabia is tied with them).

:wtf:?

[bigtree]

15. and Pakistan is China's favorite son

go figure . . .

[Maple]

3. Ya know...this nanny shit

is starting to get on my nerves.

Who died and made Bush God anyway?

He is beginning to be an irritant, and you know what happens to irritants in an oyster shell.

Smothered.

[DBoon]

5. Irritant in an oyster becomes a pearl

Bush is more of an irritant in the lower digestive tract. What they become is not as pretty as a pearl.

[Maple]

6. Smothered either way

and at least a pearl is useful

If you get stuck with a lemon, make lemonade and all that. :D

[DBoon]

8. And a bowel irritant

might make fertilizer, though I wouldn't want to be one to step in it.

[FreedomAngel82]

14. I don't like it either

Why is he the one to go around and tell people what to do when we have more nukes than anybody? I'm so disgusted. Can you imagine if this was a democratic president going around doing this? The right-wingers would be having a cow!!! :argh:

[doc03]

9. China gets the money to buy their arms from the people

in the US that buy their shit at Walmart.

[lovuian]

10. Is Biden & Congress nuts Hillary & Biden are beating the War

drums but nobody seems to be listening!!!

[FreedomAngel82]

11. And of course

Bush flipflops. In the 2000 debate in one of them he was asked about policing the world and he said "I don't think we should be the one's policing the world." :eyes: What a dork!

[LynnTheDem]

13. GO for it, bush! This one's a sure win for the EU.

And when America's economy speeds up its spiral into the tank, maybe America will learn a valuable lesson; no one likes a bully.

And which nation builds the Sunburn missiles? Which nation supplies America with bullets?

It ain't easy being as stupid as bush.