Russia, Iran and Syria issue warning to US

TIL Desk/World/Moscow/ Russia, Syria and Iran strongly warned the United States today against launching new strikes on Syria and called for an international investigation of the chemical weapons attack there that killed nearly 90 people.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who hosted his Iranian and Syrian counterparts in Moscow, denounced the US missile strikes on Syria as a “flagrant violation” of international law. Additional such actions would entail “grave consequences not only for regional but global security,” Lavrov said.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem said the meeting sent a “strong message” to Washington. Iran’s Mohammad Javad Zarif emphasized that the participants agreed that unilateral actions by the US were unacceptable. The US accuses the Syrian government of deliberately launching the deadly chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun on April 4.

Russia has alleged that the victims were killed by toxic agents from a rebel chemical arsenal hit by Syrian war planes. Moscow has warned against putting the blame on Damascus until an independent inquiry is conducted and vetoed a proposed UN resolution on the attack, saying it failed to mention the need to inspect the affected area.