Britain Says No August Deadline on Arming Syrian Rebels

Foreign Secretary William Hague said on Tuesday that Britain was not bound by any deadline in deciding whether or not to arm the Syrian rebels, after the European Union lifted a weapons embargo.

He repeated that London had yet to decide if it will give the rebels weapons following the EU move late Monday, but he rejected suggestions that it could not do so until after an EU review of its position on August 1.

No EU member state intends to send any weapons immediately for fear of endangering the prospects of a peace conference dubbed Geneva 2 that Russia and the United States are trying to organize as early as next month.

Speaking to BBC radio, Hague said: "I must correct one thing, because I know there's been discussion of some sort of August deadline. That is not the case.

"There will be a discussion in the EU by August 1."

He added: "We have said we have made our own commitments that at this stage, as we work for the Geneva conference, we are not taking any decision to send any arms to anyone.

"But that is not related to a date of August 1. I don't want anyone to think that therefore there is any automatic decision after August 1 or that we are excluded from doing so beforehand."