Luxembourg - The European Union on Tuesday dropped the arms embargo it imposed on Uzbekistan after the massacre of Andijan in 2005, saying that the Central Asian state had pledged to improve its record on human rights. EU member states "welcome the commitment of Uzbekistan to work with the EU on a range of questions relating to human rights and the rule of law" and "decide not to renew the remaining (sanctions)" which it imposed in November 2005, foreign ministers meeting in Luxembourg said in a statement.
The embargo is due to expire on November 13.
In May 2005, Uzbek security forces opened fire on unarmed demonstrators in the city of Andijan, killing and wounding hundreds.
The EU condemned the killings, and in November 2005 slapped visa bans on Uzbek leaders and outlawed the sale of arms and "equipment for internal repression," such as trucks armed with water cannon, to Uzbekistan.
However, since then the EU has become keen to improve its ties with the oil- and gas-rich states of Central Asia. In 2008, the bloc lifted the visa bans, saying that Uzbekistan had "made progress" on human rights. It left the arms embargo in place.
While foreign ministers on Tuesday decided to let the ban expire, rather than renewing it, they also called on the Uzbek authorities to improve their human-rights record, including by releasing pro- democracy activists and guaranteeing media freedom.
