Brussels, 18/07/2005 (Agence Europe) - President Karimov's persistent refusal to accept an independent international inquiry into the massacres in Andijan will not have an immediate impact on EU/Uzbekistan relations, but several options of sanction will be studied in the light of the results of a visit that the new EU Special Representative for Central Asia, Jan Kubis, is to make in the region. This was agreed by the foreign meetings on Monday during their External Relations Council presided by Jack Straw, of Britain. The Council was “profoundly concerned” by the situation in the country and condemns the refusal by Uzbek authorities to allow independent experts shed light on the massacres reported in Andijan but, on Monday, the Twenty-Five were unable to agree on immediate suspension of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) or some parts of the agreement - despite the fact that the deadline set by the EU had expired on 30 June without President Karimov having changed his mind about the international investigation. While draft conclusions, prepared by Coreper at the end of last week, suggested that the Council “suspend, for the time being, further deepening of the EU/Uzbekistan PCA”, the conclusions adopted on Monday do not see that far. They call on the relevant Council bodies to closely follow the situation in the country and “keep under review the case for suspension of further elements of the PCA”. The conclusions specify that another possibility of sanction would be to introduce an embargo on European exports of arms and military equipment to Uzbekistan, as well as on other equipment that could be used for internal repression. The Council recalls that relations between the EU and Uzbekistan are based on mutual respect of democratic principles, rule of law and human rights, which are all part of the PCA. The Council condemns the Uzbek government for breaching these principles by “excessive, disproportionate and indiscriminate use of force” in Andijan. The new EU Special Representative for Central Asia, Jan Kubis of Slovakia, is invited to visit the region as soon as possible. The Council intends to re-examine the PCA and to enact on possible sanctions on the basis of the report by Mr Kubis.