The European Union nations on Friday failed to agree on lifting their 15-year-old ban on arms sales to China.

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer said foreign ministers at their meeting in Luxembourg failed to generate "a consensus" on the issue.

He said the 25-nation EU would keep the issue under study and step up discussions with the United States.

The proposal to lift the arms embargo has put trans-Atlantic ties under renewed strain, with the United States voicing strong opposition to the action.

Britain, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden want to retain the arms ban, while Germany and France have long urged fellow EU members to lift the embargo.

Earlier, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Qin Gang says the EU arms embargo on China is obsolete.

He notes the key to lifting the ban is to eradicate political discrimination against China, which won't lead to China's large-scale weapons procurement.

"China and the European Union have established a comprehensive strategic partnership. If the EU maintains the discriminative embargo on China, it won't benefit China-EU relations to move forward smoothly. We hope the EU can take the overall situation into account and lift the arms ban as soon as possible," said Qin.

The issue of lifting EU's arms ban on China has been under active consideration by the EU since December 2002.

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn says the European Union's leadership still hopes the bloc can lift its arms embargo on China by June.

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn, whose country currently holds the 25-country bloc's presidency, made this comment on the sidelines of two days of informal talks with his EU counterparts.

He noted EU ministers need to find a solution on lifting the ban "with a consensus" and said the EU should boost its strategic ties with China to tackle global challenges.

EU leaders last December asked their foreign ministers to work toward lifting the ban by this June, when Luxembourg hands over the EU presidency to Britain.

In a related development, spokesman of EU's General Affairs and External Relations Nicolas Kerleroux said the EU is committed to removing the arms embargo on China, but there is no timetable on this matter.

He also indicated the EU will soon endorse a binding code of conduct on arms sales, which is stricter and more comprehensive than the arm embargo.

(CRI, Xinhua News Agency April 17, 2005)