BRUSSELS -- EU foreign ministers gathered on Monday to discuss relations between China and the European Union (EU), as well as the issue of lifting the arms embargo against China.

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The event will be the first time this year that EU foreign ministers have discussed EU-China ties.

Over lunch, they are to discuss the issue of lifting the arms ban against China, and the ministers are expected in the afternoon to discuss a policy paper on EU-China relations tabled by the European Commission (EC), the EU's executive body.

The meeting is expected to issue two separate conclusion documents, one on the EU-China strategic partnership, and the other on lifting the arms embargo, a press officer from the EU told Xinhua.

The ministers will spend most of their time exploring a way out of the standoff over Turkey's accession talks.