Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday that selling weapons to Syrian opposition forces would violate international law. Lavrov told a press conference that lifting the arms ban would not affect EU commitments which prohibit the supply of arms to non-government agencies. A “Friends of Syria” meeting in Istanbul on Saturday considered loosening the weapons sanction on insurgent fighters in Syria.

Also on Monday, Alaeddin Boroujerdi, Head of the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said at a meeting during his Damascus visit that the Syrian army is trying to defend Syria without any external support. Boroujerdi said the US, regional allies, and parties providing funds, arms, and military training to the insurgents are responsible for the ongoing violence in Syria. He said the best option is to let President Bashar al-Assad remain in power until 2014 when an election will be held for Syrians to determine their future by themselves.