However, his proud announcement that he had succeeded in persuading other EU member states into agreeing to lift the arms embargo preventing Britain from arming the al-Qaida linked terrorists in Syria, was disingenuous at best.
Hague claimed:
EU nations agreed to bring the arms embargo on the Syrian opposition to an end. This was the outcome that the United Kingdom wanted. It was a difficult decision for some countries but it was necessary and right to reinforce international efforts to reach a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Syria.
It was important for Europe to send a clear signal to the Assad regime that it has to negotiate seriously, and that all options remain on the table if it refuses to do so.
All lies, since almost all the other members states were against lifting the embargo. They capitulated in order to "preserve the semblance of unified policy" on the issue of sanctions against the Assad government. Austria went as far as to state openly that in fact the negotiations had collapsed, and that the entire EU sanctions programme would collapse by midnight on Friday.
The truth is that Britain bullied the other member states to sit quietly. The only concession that Hague seems to have given in return is that there will be no arms to the rebels until August at the earliest.
Britain and the US have been permitting arms to filter through to the terrorists in Syria for months, via Libya, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. So far, though, these have been small calibre weapons. Now that the embargo has effectively been lifted, large calibre weapons can be sent.
Coincidentally(?), while Britain was bullying the EU on arms, Senator John McCain was visiting the terrorists in Syria to discuss the supply of heavy weapons and the imposition of a no fly zone.
And while all this was going on, US Secretary of State John Kerry was meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Paris. After the meeting, Kerry said they were both "deeply committed" to a transitional government in Syria chosen by mutual consent.
Russia, however, continues to play its own game. Its latest move is to announce that it will be delivering anti-aircraft missiles to the Syrian government in order to "deter hotheads" from getting involved in the war in Syria.