US, UK and France jointly vow to take appropriate action against Syrian regime for chemical attacks on civilians

New York, August 23: The United States, France and the United Kingdom on Tuesday jointly reiterated their condemnation and vowed to respond appropriately to the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime in Syria.

 

Notably, on the fifth anniversary of the horrific Ghouta Sarin attack, US, UK and France in United Nations Security Council meeting jointly reiterated their condemnation of the use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime. The three nations also vowed to take appropriate action against Syrian President Bashar Assad.

In a statement, the three nations said, “As Permanent Members of the Security Council, we reaffirm our shared resolve to preventing the use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, and for holding them accountable for any such use.”

“Our position on the Assad regime’s use of chemical weapons is unchanged. As we have demonstrated, we will respond appropriately to any further use of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime, which has had such devastating humanitarian consequences for the Syrian population,” the statement added.

The statement further read, “We welcome the establishment of attribution arrangements at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), in accordance with its authority under the Chemical Weapons Convention, as confirmed by the decision of the Conference of States Parties.”

“The establishment of these arrangements will help ensure that the perpetrators of chemical weapons use in Syria cannot escape identification. We welcome the launch of the International Partnership against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons on 23 January 2018, and call on all countries committed to fight impunity to join the International Partnership. We remain committed to securing justice for victims of chemical weapons use,” the three nations said.

The statement also noted, “Furthermore, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France are gravely concerned over reports of a military offensive by the Syrian regime against civilians and civilian infrastructure in Idlib, and the resulting humanitarian consequences. We also underline our concern at the potential for further – and illegal – use of chemical weapons.”

“We urge supporters of the Assad regime to use their influence to uphold the global norm against chemical weapons use. We implore those countries to recognize that the unchecked use of chemical weapons by any state presents an unacceptable security threat to all states. We urge the international community to support our collective efforts to end Syria’s use of chemical weapons. And we remain resolved to act if the Assad regime uses chemical weapons again,” it concluded.

In 2012, the Assad regime allegedly resorted to the use of chemical weapons during military offensives, not only in Ghouta but also in Khan Sheikhoun, Ltamenah, Saraqib, and Douma, killing at least 300 civilians and injuring thousands.

After the heinous attack, US and Russia brokered a 2013 deal to dismantle Syria's chemical weapons program following US threats of military action in response to the Ghouta attack. However, in the year 2017, a chlorine attack took place in Khan Sheikhoun that killed more than 70 people which forced US to launch cruise missile strikes on a Syrian airbase. While in April this year, the US, UK and France conducted joint airstrikes in Syria in response to the suspected chemical attack in Douma.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/us-uk-france-statement-on-the-chemical-weapons-attack-in-syria