EU cautious on Syria arming rebels

Brussels the European Union top diplomat, Catherine Ashton, urged caution on Saturday on a proposal by Britain and France to the rebels fighting Syrian President Bashar al Assad regime to arm themselves.

"We have to work through, very carefully the best insight that we can what the consequences would be," she said, the day after the EU wrapped in a top without agreement on easing an arms embargo for arms shipments to the rebels. "Any decision to lift an arms embargo, you should consider the consequences of that in a number of different ways," Ashton said in response to a question on the Forum of Brussels, an annual Conference on transatlantic relations.

"It would make more weapons in the field bring more or less likely that others will do the same? What would be the answer of Assad, based on what we know about his answer so far? It would stop people be killed or would it kill people faster? ", she asked.

London and Paris have to EU diplomacy on Syria shocked by pressing for the linear arms embargo be amended to the arm of the Syrian rebels in a bid to balance their advantage in the two-year-old rebellion against the Assad regime tip. (AFP)