'US Shows Complete Reluctance to Cooperate on Syria': Kremlin
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Washington's actions have demonstrated a complete reluctance to take into account other parties' interests, the Kremlin spokesman said.
The United States has demonstrated complete unwillingness to cooperate on Syria and take into account the interests of other partners, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.
"The US side thus has demonstrated a complete reluctance to somehow cooperate on Syria and take into account each other's interests and concerns," Peskov told reporters.
Moscow is not aware of possible new US sanctions against Russia over Syria due to a lack of statements from President Donald Trump and his administration, the Kremlin spokesman said.
"Not know what is at issue, and we really do not know what is at issue, it is difficult to talk about any reaction," Peskov said, Sputnik reported.
US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Sunday that Trump and members of his team "have started to have" conversations related to imposing sanctions on Russia and Iran in connection to their support for Damascus.
"Yes, there was a statement by the US ambassador, but we have not heard about any statements to this effect from President Trump or his representatives," Peskov said.
On April 7, the United States launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at the Syrian military airfield in Ash Sha’irat. US President Donald Trump said that the attack was a response to the alleged chemical weapon use in Syria's Idlib province on April 4, which resulted in the death of over 80 people, an incident which Washington blames on the Syrian government.
The Syrian foreign minister denied the government’s involvement in the Idlib incident, saying it had never nor would it ever use chemical weapons on either civilians or terrorists operating in the country.
The Russian Defense Ministry said on April 5 that the airstrike near Khan Shaykhun by the Syrian air force hit a terrorist warehouse that stored chemical weapons slated for delivery to Iraq, and called on the UN Security Council to launch a proper investigation into the incident.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on April 6 that groundless accusations in the chemical weapons incident in Syria's Idlib were unacceptable before the investigation into the matter had been carried out while Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Saturday criticized the US missile attack as a violation of the international law.
The US missile attack claimed the lives of 10 people, an officer of the Syrian Armed Forces told Sputnik. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the attack left two Syrian servicemen missing, four killed, and six suffering severe injuries from the fire. Homs Governor Talal Barazi said on April 7 that at least two civilians from a nearby village and five Syrian servicemen were killed.
After the missile attack, the Russian Defense Ministry suspended a point-to-point communications link with the US military under the memorandum of understanding on de-confliction in Syria.