UK ‘working closely’ with its allies over response to Syrian gas attack
THERESA May has “agreed” in telephone conversations with Donald Trump and Emmanuel Macron that the international community “needed to respond” following reports of a suspected chemical attack in Syria.
Downing Street said the Prime Minister spoke to the US and French presidents yesterday, and they agreed to “continue working closely together” to ensure those responsible were “held to account”.
The United States is looking to the UK and France for support as it finalises its response to the assault on the rebel-held town of Douma.
Presidents Trump and Macron had already agreed to co-ordinate a “strong, joint response” after talks by telephone.
A Downing Street spokeswoman said Mrs May held separate calls with the two leaders and they agreed the Douma incident was “utterly reprehensible”.
“They agreed that the international community needed to respond to uphold the worldwide prohibition on the use of chemical weapons. They agreed they would continue working closely together and with international partners to ensure that those responsible were held to account.”
During a visit to Cambridge earlier yesterday, Mrs May sidestepped questions about whether Britain would be involved in military action: “Obviously we are working urgently with our allies and partners to assess what has happened on the ground.
“If this is the responsibility of Assad’s regime in Syria then it’s yet another example of the brutality and brazen disregard for their people that they show.
“I spoke this morning to President Macron, I will be speaking later today with President Trump and the National Security Council meets regularly, and I’ ll be chairing a meeting of the National Security Council later today, and we’ ll be working with our allies as I say, crucially, to make an assessment of what has happened on the ground.”
President Trump has said an apparent poison gas attack in Syria will be “met forcefully” and he held talks with his military leaders in Washington on Monday night.
He did not give a time-frame for any retaliatory action, but said the US could not stand by as such atrocities take place because “we are able to stop it”.
The president’s comments came after Moscow’s ambassador to the UN warned of the potential consequences of Western intervention in Syria.
During heated exchanges at the UN Security Council, Vassily Nebenzia said US attacks on Syria “could lead to grave repercussions”.
US ambassador Nikki Haley accused Russia of having “the blood of Syrian children” on its hands after Mr Trump said that “nothing’s off the table” in dealing with the alleged outrage.
Mr Nebenzia dismissed claims the Syrian regime had used chemical weapons as “fake news” as he called for inspectors from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons on Tuesday to visit the site of the attack, which has left at least 40 people, including children, dead.