Europe will pay high price if it arms terrorists: President Al-Assad

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says European countries will “pay the price” if they send weapons to foreign-backed militants in the Arab country.

“If the Europeans deliver weapons, then Europe’s backyard will become terrorist-like, and Europe will pay the price for it,” Assad was quoted as saying by German daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on Monday.

“Terrorists will become battle-skilled and return laden with extremist ideology,” he added.

Assad also rejected US, British and French claims that Syrian forces had used chemical weapons against the foreign-backed militants fighting in the country.

“If Paris, London and Washington had even one piece of evidence for their claims, they would have presented it publicly,” he said.

Syria’s deputy foreign minister, Faisal Muqdad, also criticized discussions by Western countries on arming Syria militants saying they are “incitement to murder and unacceptable on a human and moral level.”

“This is the principle of those who want continued killing in Syria,” Muqdad added.

The comments came after US President Barack Obama ordered his administration last week to provide militants in Syria with weapons, claiming that the Syrian government had crossed Washington’s “red line” for using chemical weapons against the militants.

Both Britain and France have also discussed the prospect of arming the militants, who have been battling to overthrow the government of President Bashar al-Assad for more than two years.

Discussions on the delivery of the weapons, including assault rifles, shoulder-fired rocket-propelled grenades, and antitank missiles to Syria militants came days after foreign-sponsored militants suffered heavy losses in confrontation with the Syrian Army.

The Syria crisis began in March 2011, and many people, including large numbers of government forces, have been killed.