Old Europe (France, Germany, Belgium, and friends) is ready to sell another tiny nation, Taiwan, down the river. Old Europe also foolishly wishes to strengthen the hand of the Peoples’ Republic of China, perhaps the greatest potential threat to democracy.

The EU banned the sale of military technology to China after the communists slaughtered peaceful pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square in 1989. But now Old Europe, hungry for dollars/euros, is ready to sell arms to the Chinese communists, despite the fact that absolutely no political reforms have taken place in China since 1989.

Once again today, we witnessed the fundamental rift between Old Europe and the US:

US President George W Bush has voiced "deep concern" about European plans to lift an arms embargo on China - putting him at odds with the French president.

Jacques Chirac insisted the ban was "no longer justified" but said Europe and the US should agree on conditions for lifting it.

No longer justified? Despite China’s economic reforms, its government is one of the most oppressive regimes on Earth. China has the world’s 5th largest “defense” budget and a very powerful economy. Just who is going to attack China, the world’s most populous nation? Communists with state-of-the-art weaponry? This is madness.

On the other hand, Taiwan has made great progress in moving towards democracy. So, of course, Old Europe, who enjoys democracy and the protection of the US, is more than willing to sell out Taiwan. Just as fast as they would see Israel overrun and a second attempt at genocide carried out. Just as they ignored the plight of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia under Soviet rule, which, incidentally, were democracies before Stalin. Just as the Europeans propped up Saddam.

How can the US ever see eye-to-eye with a Europe that loves its own democracy, but disdains it elsewhere in the world?