On Thursday, the United States issued a missile strike in Syria in retaliation for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime’s chemical gas attack against its own people on Tuesday. Commander in Chief Donald Trump executed his first major military action since taking office in January by sending 59 Tomahawk missiles from two U.S. Navy destroyers in the Mediterranean into Syria, hitting the Shayrat army airbase. The airbase is believed to be the one where Syria launched the deadly chemical gas weapons that resulted in the death of more than 70 people with hundreds more injured. Russia condemned the U.S. attack on Syria, its close Middle East ally.
“President Putin believes that the U.S. strikes on Syria represent an aggression against a sovereign state in violation of international law under a far-fetched pretext,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a statement. “Washington’s move deals a significant blow to Russia-U.S. relations, which are already in deplorable shape.”
The Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement calling the U.S. actions a violation of international law:
The very presence of US troops and other countries on the territory of Syria, without the consent of the Government or the decision of the UN Security Council is a gross, obvious and unwarranted violation of international law.
If before it was due to the task of combating terrorism, now there is a clear act of aggression against a sovereign Syria. US Actions taken today further destroy the Russian-American relations.
On Friday, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev released a statement saying that the U.S. missile strike in Syria “was on the brink of military clashes with Russia.” Soon after, reports emerged that Russia was sending a warship to the position of the two U.S. Navy destroyers that launched the attack on Syria.
The Russian Frigate, Admiral Grigorovich RFS-494, reportedly left the Black Sea, went through the Bosphorus strait and was traveling to the position of the USS Ross and the USS Porter.
RIA news agency reported on Friday that a source told them that Russia was demanding an emergency U.N. meeting to discuss the U.S. airstrikes.
[revad2]
