DURING DESCENT AND VECTOR TO FINAL APCH COURSE; ACT LGT MADE UNEXPECTED AND UNAUTH LEVEL OFF TO AVOID CLOUDS RESULTING IN LESS THAN STANDARD SEPARATION.

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NUMEROUS TSTMS BTWN OUR POS AND ARPT. CLRED TO DEVIATE N OF RWY 27 LOC AS NECESSARY FOR WX. CLRED FROM 6000 TO 3000'. BEGAN DSCNT. APCH CTL ADVISED US OF TFC AT 2 O'CLOCK. WE ADVISED TFC IN SIGHT. IN AN ATTEMPT TO MAINTAIN VISUAL WITH TFC AND CLR OF WX; WE SLOWED DSCNT AND LEVELED AT APPROX 4800' TO CLR A SMALL BAND OF CLOUDS. AT THIS POINT THE CTLR QUESTIONED US AS TO WHETHER OR NOT WE HAD BEGUN OUR DSCNT. WE INFORMED HIM WE HAD AND CONTINUED ON DOWN. HE THEN GAVE US AN ASSIGNED HDG TO CLR US OF TFC. BY NOW OUR TFC HAD PASSED OVER BY 500-1000' AND BEHIND AND TO THE LEFT BY APPROX 1 1/2 MI. WE MAINTAINED VISUAL CONTACT WITH TFC AND FIELD AND COMPLETED APCH AND LNDG W/O INCIDENT. UP TO THE TIME THE CTLR QUERIED US AS TO WHETHER OR NOT WE HAD INITIATED OUR DSCNT; WE HAD NO IDEA THAT THERE WAS A POSSIBLE CONFLICT. WE HAD NOT BEEN INFORMED TO EXPEDITE DSCNT; TURN; OR VARY OUR FLT PATH IN ANY WAY. WE WERE UNDER THE IMPRESSION THAT WE WERE CLRED TO DEVIATE AS NECESSARY TO CLR THE WX. HAD WE BEEN INFORMED OF A POSSIBLE CONFLICT WE COULD; AND OF COURSE WOULD; HAVE USED ANY OF NUMEROUS ALTERNATIVES AVAILABLE TO US TO AVOID A PROB.