On the second anniversary of the uprising that evolved into Syria’s brutal civil war, leaders at an EU summit yesterday failed to agree on whether to arm rebels trying to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
The item was not on the agenda — the main topic was EU-Russian relations — but French officials had indicated French President Francois Hollande would raise it at the meeting, which took place in Brussels. Britain has also pressed for the ability to arm the rebels, but other countries are adamantly opposed to putting more munitions into Syria.
The 27 EU government leaders handed over the issue to their finance ministers, asking them to try to forge a common position when they hold an informal meeting in Dublin at the end of next week.
Photo: Reuters
“We are all deeply concerned about the desperate situation in Syria,” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said after the summit broke up. “Europe can only play a strong and effective role if it acts as one.”
The EU has in place an embargo prohibiting any arms from being sent to Syria, whether to the rebels or to the al-Assad regime. That embargo is scheduled to remain in effect until May, when it will either be renewed or allowed to expire.
France and Britain have argued they should be able supply arms to the rebels, saying the al-Assad regime is receiving arms from Russia and Iran. With more weaponry, those countries argue, the rebels could defend themselves and the civilian population, and members of the al-Assad regime would see more clearly the need to negotiate a political settlement.
However, other EU countries say Syria is already awash in weaponry and does not need any more. They argue that arming the rebels could spark an arms race in the country, with Russia and Iran continuing their support for the regime.
In Vienna, Austrian Defense Minister Gerhard Klug said he was opposed to EU weapons for Syrian rebels, saying they could end up in the wrong hands. Austrian troops form part of the 1,000-strong UN peacekeeping force on the Golan, and the country’s concern about the safety of its soldiers has risen since Syrian rebels temporarily detained 21 Filipinos last week.
Klug told Austrian state broadcaster ORF yesterday that EU arms deliveries “would mean more weapons in this crisis region,” adding there was no guarantee about whom they would end up with.
In Damascus, Syrian authorities yesterday beefed up security measures as rebels urged supporters to mark the second anniversary of the country’s uprising by stepping up attacks against the regime.
The revolt against al-Assad’s authoritarian rule began in March 2011 with protests in the southern city of Daraa, after troops arrested teenagers who scrawled anti-regime graffiti on a wall. It has since morphed into a civil war with an estimated 70,000 people killed, according to the UN.
Beijing’s continued provocations in the Taiwan Strait reveal its intention to unilaterally change the “status quo” in the area, the US Department of State said on Saturday, calling for a peaceful resolution to cross-strait issues. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) reported that four China Coast Guard patrol vessels entered restricted and prohibited waters near Kinmen County on Friday and again on Saturday. A State Department spokesperson said that Washington was aware of the incidents, and urged all parties to exercise restraint and refrain from unilaterally changing the “status quo.” “Maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is in line with our [the
EXTENDED RANGE: Hsiung Sheng missiles, 100 of which might be deployed by the end of the year, could reach Chinese command posts and airport runways, a source said A NT$16.9 billion (US$534.93 million) project to upgrade the military’s missile defense systems would be completed this year, allowing the deployment of at least 100 long-range Hsiung Sheng missiles and providing more deterrence against China, military sources said on Saturday. Hsiung Sheng missiles are an extended-range version of the Hsiung Feng IIE (HF-2E) surface-to-surface cruise missile, and are believed to have a range of up to 1,200km, which would allow them to hit targets well inside China. They went into mass production in 2022, the sources said. The project is part of a special budget for the Ministry of National Defense aimed at
READY TO WORK: Taiwan is eager to cooperate and is hopeful that like-minded states will continue to advocate for its inclusion in regional organizations, Lai said Maintaining the “status quo” in the Taiwan Strait, and peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region must be a top priority, president-elect William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday after meeting with a delegation of US academics. Leaders of the G7, US President Joe Biden and other international heads of state have voiced concerns about the situation in the Strait, as stability in the region is necessary for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world, Lai said. The vice president, who is to be inaugurated in May, welcomed the delegation and thanked them for their support for Taiwan and issues concerning the Strait. The international community
COOPERATION: Two crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank off Kinmen were rescued, two were found dead and another two were still missing at press time The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) was yesterday working with Chinese rescuers to find two missing crewmembers from a Chinese fishing boat that sank southwest of Kinmen County yesterday, killing two crew. The joint operation managed to rescue two of the boat’s six crewmembers, but two were already dead when they were pulled from the water, the agency said in a statement. Rescuers are still searching for two others from the Min Long Yu 61222, a boat registered in China’s Fujian Province that capsized and sank 1.03 nautical miles (1.9km) southwest of Dongding Island (東碇), it added. CGA Director-General Chou Mei-wu (周美伍) told a