Atlantic Council

From Slobodan Lekic, the AP:  European Union nations will enforce an arms embargo against Syria by boarding ships and aircraft carrying suspicious cargo to the war-torn nation, an official said Friday.

The senior EU official said obligatory inspections will commence after being adopted by foreign ministers Monday. The official could not be named under standing rules. . . .

The inspections will only take place on EU territory or in its waters, the official said. It will not apply elsewhere because there are no U.N. sanctions against Syria. . . .

In January, a Russian ship that made an unscheduled stop in Cyprus while carrying arms to Syria was allowed to continue its journey after changing its destination. And last month, another Russian-operated ship heading to Syria with weapons turned back after its British insurer decided to remove the vessel's coverage.  (photo: EU Association)