Hague welcomes sanctions on Syria

UK foreign secretary William Hague has welcomed the extension of EU sanctions against the Syrian regime. "Today, we agreed as EU Foreign Ministers to give our full support to the deployment of a UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS) of up to 300 unarmed observers. We supported the unanimous call from the UN Security Council for the Assad regime to end immediately its use of violence against civilians and implement fully its commitments under Kofi Annan's plan. Recent reports of the continuing use of brutal military force are deeply concerning and it is vital the EU and its international partners keep up the pressure on Syria until we see a visible and sustained change in the regime's use of military force, and implementation of the Annan plan," said Hague in a statement. "EU foreign ministers also agreed to ban the export of further goods and technology which might be used for internal repression to Syria, which will include items that could be used to produce chemical or biological weapons. Despite the urgent need for Assad to end the violence immediately, he and his close supporters continue to lead comfortable lives. Today the EU has also agreed to ban the export of luxury goods to Syria," he said. "The UK will continue to push for the EU and international partners to maintain the pressure on the Syrian regime, including through the Friends of Syria group."