EU to Rebels: Arms for Syria’s Oil

Local Editor

EU governments agreed Monday to ease sanctions on Syria, allowing European importers to buy oil from the Syrian opposition. The move is aimed at EU countries providing a financial lifeline to rebels.

The European Union foreign ministers decided to ease the 2011 imposed sanctions on Syrian oil import during the Monday meeting in Luxembourg.
From now on, the European countries are allowed to buy oil from Syria, but only if authorized by the Syrian National Coalition, an opposition umbrella group.

Before the Monday meeting, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the decision will "send a signal that we are open to helping in other ways, in all the ways possible, including ways adding to the finances [of the opposition]."
Easing sanctions is said to be aimed at giving the opposition a way to raise money for purchasing arms.

Monday's move comes in the footsteps of a failed campaign to ease the Syrian arms embargo, which was led by Britain and France. Several EU countries such as Germany, Austria and Sweden have voiced their opposition to such a concession, fearing it would lead to weapons falling into the hands of the region's terrorists.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday reminded that selling weapons to rebels would violate international law, even if the embargo on weapons supplies to Syria is ever lifted.
"The public lifting of this embargo, if it comes to this will still leave us with the international obligations of the EU nations banning the supplies of weapons and ammunition to non-state subjects," Lavrov told media in Moscow.

Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition is to obtain some more palpable support from the US, following the Secretary of State John Kerry's Saturday announcement of a boost in financial aid and "non-offensive military supplies" to the rebels.

Lavrov and Kerry will discuss the EU decision on easing sanctions on Syria during their Tuesday meeting, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

Source: News agencies, Edited by moqawama.org