Britain is not planning to extend its military intervention in Syria, according to Prime Minister Theresa May’s official spokeswoman, despite Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson telling the Foreign Affairs Committee the UK should consider more “kinetic action.”
“There are no plans for military action. We are working with the international community to look at how to bring the conflict to an end,” May’s spokeswoman said when asked about Johnson’s comments.
A range of options are available, she added.
The spokeswoman’s comments contradict those of May’s foreign secretary, who addressed the Foreign Affairs Committee early on Thursday.
“It is right now that we should be looking again at the more kinetic options, the military options,” said Johnson.
He added the West’s future role in Syria would be discussed at high-level meetings this weekend.
Johnson added negotiations with Russia over the future of the Syrian crisis have “run out of road” and that the West should now consider engaging in more “kinetic action.”
During the hearing, Johnson made the strongest indication yet that Britain and its allies are considering a military intervention in the Syrian crisis, adding that such military options are still “a long day’s march” away and would be dependent on the US.
The secretary even confessed to being a Russophile and described how he visited the country when he was 16.
Russia and the UK must work together more, particularly in the fight against terrorism, he said.
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin cannot yet offer any assessment of Johnson’s comments, as it’s necessary to find out the motives and reasons for a possible military intervention by the UK to address the situation in Syria.
Source: Russia Today
