John Baron MP: arming Syrian rebels could be a mistake of historic proportions

MP opposes lifting of arms embargo

Last night in the House of Commons, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Alistair Burt MP, opened a debate concerning the EU arms embargo to Syria. During the debate, he announced that the Government would be looking to repeal the arms embargo at the meeting on 1^st June, though no decision to send arms to the rebels has yet been taken.

In the House of Commons, John said,

“Syria is a melting pot for a proxy war being fought out either directly or indirectly at various levels, whether Sunni versus Shi’a; the West versus China or Russia; concerned minorities within the country, such as Alawites and Christians, against what could follow; or Iran versus Saudi Arabia.”

“I urge the Minister and the Government to think carefully before they pour more arms into a conflict which could not only escalate the violence within the civil war, but lead to an escalation of an arms race beyond Syria’s borders. This could be a mistake of historic proportions.”

“We do not know much about the rebel forces, but we do know that some are linked to al-Qaeda and some have committed atrocities. Tracking and tracing weaponry that we put into Syria in order to only deal with the moderate elements is beyond the capability of any western Government.”

“I urge the Government instead to focus on diplomacy. We have the conference suggested by the Russians, which we should pursue to the very end. We should also do what we can on the humanitarian side, where more can still be done.”