Chinese Weapons Aid Syrian Rebels, European Superpowers To Follow

Chinese defense products are likely to get a boost after the country's missiles were found to have aided Syrian rebels in bringing down atleast two helicopters.

Two videos uploaded online by Free Syrian Army rebel forces show two Mi-8/17 helicopters downed by shoulder-launched, air-defense missiles FN-6, or Man-Portable Air-Defense (MANPAD) systems developed by China
Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. The first video was shot in the eastern city of Dei ez-Zor, while the second video was shot on March 6 at Menagh Air Base near the northwestern city of Aleppo.

Its unclear how the rebels came into possession of the missiles or how many they currently have.  China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin on Friday refuted allegations that his country sold weapons to
Syria "directly or through Iran."

"The accusations are groundless and we cannot accept them. The Chinese government always holds a cautious and responsible attitude toward the export of military goods," he said.

Meanwhile, superpowers France and Britain are rushing to arm Syrian rebels hoping to tip the balance in their favor. British Prime Minister David Cameron has said that if the EU refused to lift the arm embargo imposed against arming the Syrian rebels, his country would bypass the embargo and act solely.

"I hope that we can persuade our European partners, if and when a further change becomes necessary, they will agree with us," Cameron told a parliamentary committee. "But if we can't, then it's not out of
the question we might have to do things in our own way. It's possible," he added.

Cameron, last week, approved the provision of providing four-wheel drive armored vehicles and body armor for Syrian opposition rebels as part of a 9.4 million Euro package of non-lethal equipment.

The British Daily Star Sunday has recently published a report, claiming that Britain's government had sent "a secret 20 million Euros arsenal of weapons to Syrian rebels, including rifles, machine guns and missiles". 


France has also taken a similar stance as the British and said that it will act unilaterally if the EU does not lift the arms embargo.