PM: Syria strikes were ‘moral and legal’
THERESA May yesterday insisted air strikes against Syria were in the British national interest and not as a result of pressure from Trump.
The Prime Minister told parliament: “We have not done this because President Trump asked us to, we have done it because we believed it was the right thing to do, and we are not alone. There is broadbased international support for the action we have taken.”
She said she did not seek a green light from parliament for the attacks due to the need to act quickly. And she insisted her decision to order RAF Tornados into the US-led assault on three of dictator Bashar al-Assad’s chemical weapons facilities was “legally and morally right”.
During more than three hours of Commons debate, the Prime Minister said: “We cannot go back to a world where the use of chemical weapons becomes normalised.
“I am clear that the way we protect our national interest is to stand up for the global rules and standards that keep us safe.
“That is what we have done – and what we will continue to do.”
On her decision not to seek parliamentary approval for the air strikes, Mrs May said: “I am absolutely clear, Mr Speaker, that it is Parliament’s responsibility to hold me to account for such decisions – and Parliament will do so. But it is my responsibility as Prime Minster to make these decisions. And I will make them.”
Meanwhile, British and American security chiefs issued an unprecedented joint warning last night of a surge in “malicious” cyber attacks from Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The National Cyber Security Centre joined the FBI and the US Department of Homeland Security to alert businesses and public services, including the NHS, about attempts to hack computer systems to “lay a foundation for future offensive operations”.
They said “multiple sources” had reported suspected Russia infiltration to bring havoc to computers and several other devices.
The aim was to undermine the “safety, security and economic wellbeing” of Western societies.
The UK-US warning follows fears of a devastating wave of Russian cyber attacks in revenge for the allied missile strikes on President Putin’s ally Syria.
Mrs May said the Government had “enhanced our capability” to combat cyber threats following the increase in tensions with Russia.
However, last night’s warning set out the dangers posed to industry.
It said the Russian state-sponsored hackers were using “compromised routers” to conduct spoofing “man-in-the-middle” attacks to “support espionage, extract intellectual property, maintain persistent access to victim networks and potentially lay a foundation for future offensive operations”.
Cyber security centre chief executive Ciaran Martin explained: “Russia is our most capable hostile adversary in cyberspace.
“So dealing with their attacks is a major priority for the National Cyber Security Centre and our US allies. This is the first time that in attributing a cyber attack to Russia, the US and the UK have, at the same time, issued joint advice to industry about how to manage the risks from attacks.
“It marks an important step in our fight against state-sponsored aggression in cyberspace. For more than 20 years, GCHQ has been tracking the key Russian cyber attack groups. Today’s joint UK-US alert shows that the threat has not gone away. The UK Government will continue to work with international allies and industry partners to expose Russia’s unacceptable cyber behaviour, so they are held accountable for their actions.”
The joint statement made it clear that the targets of such attacks have been primarily government and private-sector organisations, critical infrastructure providers and
‘Pinpointing and degrading Assad’s chemical weapons was necessary’