The official, who asked not to be named, told a background briefing the United States and the EU had agreed to discuss the issue within broader strategic talks on security in Asia.

"If I said it (the lifting of the arms embargo) were a dead letter I would be instantly contradicted by some of my European friends. But I don't expect that the EU is going to lift it anytime soon," he said.

European leaders, spearheaded by France and Germany, agreed in December to draft an accord on scrapping the embargo imposed ater the 1989 massacre of pro-democracy students in Beijing.

But the move lost steam amid fierce opposition from the United States and China's controversial move to pass a law that could open the way for a military takeover of Taiwan.

The US official said that since then, Washington and its European allies had launched a senior-level strategic dialogue on approaches to China and the rest of Asia.

"We had approached the issue of the embargo in the wrong order," he said. "I think we needed to have a strategic discussion first, so the US and Europe could develop similar views and a similar basis for discussing policy."

The official acknowledged European governments had not changed their public position about lifting the embargo, which the Americans fear would send the wrong message on human rights and alter the Asian military equation.

But he added, "We do not have the sense that the EU is hell bent on a decision in the immediate term. They seemed committed to have a strategic dialogue which is serious. ... On that we agree and that is in process."

The official said the embargo issue was likely to resurface at some point. "But I hope that by the time this comes on the agenda we will have developed our thinking and can see the embargo in a wholly new context."

He spoke as Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao stepped up pressure on the EU to lift the weapons ban.

"The Chinese side has asked to remove the embargo with the aim at removing political discrimination against China and removing a political barrier to the development of bilateral relations," Liu said in Beijing.

"We hope that the EU will demonstrate the political wisdom and remove this political barrier to our relations as soon as possible. This will not only benefit China, but the EU side as well."

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