Britain in both war and peace in Syria?

A day after the Arab League called for an international force to be dispatched to Syria under peacekeeping pretexts, Hague admitted there are widespread fears especially in Russia and China that the force could serve as an excuse for western intervention.

However, he tried to play down such fears saying the mission would take a role similar to that formed against Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in Libya.

This comes as a report published by Debka-file, widely believed to have close links to Israeli intelligence sources, revealed that British forces have been leading arms deliveries and tactical support to Syrian rebels who triggered the bloody battles in Homs while also feeding them with intelligence to help intensify their campaign of violence.

The report said Britain and its close ally in the Libyan war, Qatar, have four operation centers in Homs with their ground troops already deployed to Syria to set the stage for toppling of president Bashar Assad’s government.

Hague said during a visit to South Africa that he does not “see the way forward in Syria as being Western boots on the ground, in any form, including in peacekeeping form.”

“I think they would need to come from other countries, rather than Western nations. But of course if such a concept could be made viable we will be supporting it in all the usual ways,” he added.

Yet the experience of western intervention in Libya led by Britain and France contradicts his remarks.

The two claimed at the time that they were committed to the UN Security Council Resolution 1973, which prohibited any ground forces’ intervention in Libya.

However, they later admitted that they did deploy ground troops to Libya both to provide anti-Gaddafi rebels with training and to engage in armed clashes against his forces.

Britain’s record in Libya and the revelations that Britain is already involved in the bloodshed in Homs raise serious questions about the real intentions behind London’s talk of support for ‘peacekeeping’ missions.

This is while the Syrian government has also rejected the Arab League decision and any related moves by third parties as interference in the country’s domestic affairs.

“Syria rejects decisions that are a flagrant interference in the country’s internal affairs and a violation of its national sovereignty,” the Syrian state news agency said.

“This decision will not prevent the Syrian government from fulfilling its responsibilities in protecting its citizens and restoring security and stability,” it added.

British efforts alongside its loyal friends in the Middle East have been countered by Russia whose Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said a peacekeeping mission should be approved by the Syrian government which should host the mission.

He also said such a mission is only conceivable when there is a ceasefire and with Syrian rebels refusing to answer any calls for talks it is difficult to see the point for such a mission.

“In order to deploy a peacekeeping mission, you need the agreement of the receiving side,” Lavrov said.

“In other words, you need to agree something resembling a ceasefire. But the problem is that the armed groups [in Syria] do not answer to anyone and are not controlled by anyone,” he added.

AMR/HE

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