A joint command centre made up of forces from Russia, Iran and militias backing Syrian President Bashar al Assad threatened reprisals against any party that carries out “aggression” against Syria, two days after US missiles hit a Syrian air base. The United States fired dozens of cruise missiles at a Syrian air base on Friday … Read more
The United States stepped up pressure Sunday on Russia to rein in Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, warning that any further chemical attacks would be “very damaging” to their relationship and suggesting there can be no peace in Syria while Assad remains in power. President Donald Trump’s top advisers took to Sunday television talk shows to … Read more
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will press Russia on its failure to prevent Syria’s use of chemical weapons in meetings this week in Moscow, he said in interviews aired Sunday. Tillerson stopped short of accusing the Russians of complicity in a suspected sarin nerve gas attack April 4 that killed at least 87 civilians … Read more
British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon on Sunday accused Russia of being responsible “by proxy” for the death of 87 civilians killed last week in a suspected chemical weapons attack. “Assad’s principal backer is Russia. By proxy Russia is responsible for every civilian death last week,” Fallon wrote in an opinion column published in The Sunday … Read more
Washington’s UN ambassador said that Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad cannot stay in power after a suspected chemical attack that prompted the first direct US military action against his government. Nikki Haley’s comments in an interview airing Sunday came as part of an apparent shift in US policy towards Assad’s government after the alleged chemical attack … Read more
Russia is to blame for “every civilian death” in the chemical weapons attack last week in Syria, Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon has claimed. Sir Michael, writing in the Sunday Times, said the Kremlin was responsible “by proxy” as the “principal backer” of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. It comes after Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson cancelled … Read more
UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Saturday he had cancelled a visit to Moscow on the heels of US-launched missile strikes on Syria and what he called “Russia’s continued defence of the Assad regime”. “Developments in Syria have changed the situation fundamentally,” Johnson said in a statement. Johnson condemned Russia’s continued support for Syrian … Read more
The top priority for the United States in Syria is to defeat the Islamic State group even before stabilizing the country, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says. Defeating the group and its self-proclaimed caliphate would eliminate not only a threat to the US but to “the whole stability in the region,” Tillerson told CBS television’s … Read more
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has said “terrorists are celebrating” US strikes on a Syrian airbase. His comments echo the response from Russia, which like Iran is allied to Syria, and from Syria itself. At least six people are reported to have been killed in the missile strikes in the early hours of Friday. The strikes … Read more
Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani has said “terrorists are celebrating” US strikes on a Syrian airbase. His comments echo the response from Russia, which like Iran is allied to Syria, and from Syria itself. At least six people are reported to have been killed in the missile strikes in the early hours of Friday. The strikes … Read more
The UK foreign secretary has called off a visit to Moscow in the wake of the Syrian chemical weapons attack. Boris Johnson, who was set to travel on Monday, said the situation had changed “fundamentally” and his priority was to continue contact with the US to provide international support for a ceasefire. He said the … Read more
US President Donald Trump has accepted his counterpart Xi Jinping’s invitation to make a visit to China, said Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Mr Trump is hosting the Chinese president for a two-day visit at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Last year Mr Trump said China had “raped the US” and vowed to brand the … Read more
The US envoy to the UN has warned America may take further action after bombarding a Syrian air base suspected of using chemical weapons. Nikki Haley said her country would not stand by when chemical weapons were used, as it was in its “vital interest” to stop their proliferation. Syrian ally Russia accused the US … Read more
Donald Trump’s missile barrage on Syria — the first major military gambit of his presidency — revealed a leader fueled by instinct and emotion, and one willing to shake up strategy in an instant. Early Tuesday, horrifying details started trickling into the White House Situation Room — a secure suite in the bowels of the … Read more
While Western powers have blamed Syria’s regime for this week’s suspected chemical attack, questions remain over why it would make such a move following a string of victories and a diplomatic comeback. The alleged toxic gas strike in Syria’s northwest prompted the United States to launch 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Shayrat airbase in … Read more
Russia hailed Donald Trump when he came to power as the leader who could help restore battered ties between Moscow and Washington. But the US president’s surprise missile strike in Syria against the Kremlin’s ally Bashar al-Assad has instead thrown down a gauntlet, infuriating Moscow and challenging its dominance in the war-torn country. Since launching … Read more
Donald Trump’s cruise missile strike on a Syrian air base drags Washington deeper into the country’s tragedy but does not yet represent a new strategy to oust Bashar al-Assad. The new US president has been an outspoken opponent of US military intervention in Middle East conflicts and until this week, his administration had insisted that … Read more
The UN Security Council has heard sharp exchanges over the US bombardment of a Syrian air base suspected of using chemical weapons. Secretary General Antonio Guterres urged restraint as Russia accused the US of encouraging “terrorists” in the region with its unilateral actions. Russia has promised to strengthen Syria’s anti-aircraft defences. US officials say the … Read more
The United States on Friday fired dozens of cruise missiles at a government-controlled airbase in Syria, in retaliation for a suspected chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held town that killed scores of civilians. The Pentagon said 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles were fired from two warships in the Mediterranean at the Shayrat airfield, targeting the base … Read more
The Russian government has condemned missile strikes by the US on a Syrian airbase, saying Washington’s action would “inflict major damage on US-Russia ties”, according to Russian news agencies. In its first public response to missile strikes by the US, the Kremlin on Friday issued a strong statement labelling the US move as “aggression against … Read more