Asia

Asia

Damascus does not use chemical weapons â€“ FM

14 April 2017 14:03 (UTC +04:00)

Damascus does not use chemical weapons either against terrorists or against its people, said Syrian Minister Walid al-Moallem.

In a joint press conference following the tripartite meeting held in Moscow April 14, the Syrian FM thanked his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov for his invitation to visit Moscow after the US aggression against Syria, extending gratitude to his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif for attending the meeting which conveys a firm message after the attack, APA’s Moscow correspondent reported.

He pledged that Syria will continue its efforts to cleanse all Syrian territories of terrorists.

As for a suspected chemical attack on the rebel-held Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun, the top diplomat noted that Damascus does not use chemical weapons either against terrorists or against its people.

“We don't have chemical weapons, and this fact is also confirmed by the Organization for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW),” said the Syrian minister calling what happened in Khan Sheikhoun a ‘fabricated action’.

He went on to say that the Syrian Air Force did not hit any targets in Khan Sheikhoun with chemical weapons.

“We strongly condemn any use of chemical weapons. That is why our demand has come to form an international expert group to visit Khan Sheikhoun and Shayrat airbase. The question is why the US and its allies are afraid of creating such a commission? Why did they commit an act of aggression before the formation of this commission? The US missile strikes cannot be justified,” added the Syrian minister.