Stephen Lendman

On Thursday, Foreign Ministers Sergey Lavrov (Russia), Walid al-Muallem (Syria) and Mohammad Javad Zarif (Iran) met in Moscow in the wake of Trump’s April 7 aggression, striking Syria’s Shayrat airbase.

In a joint press conference, they called his action a flagrant international law violation.

Lavrov said “(w)e have reiterated our position and were united in stating that the attack was an act of aggression, which blatantly violated the principles of international law and the UN Charter.”

“We call on the US and its allies to respect Syria’s sovereignty and refrain from actions similar to what happened on April 7, and which have serious ramification not only for regional, but also global security.”

Separately, Lavrov stressed “(s)uch acts of aggression are obviously meant to derail the peace process, which was endorsed in a unanimously adopted resolution of the UN Security Council and implies that the fate of Syria would be decided only by the Syrian people.”

“The action…obviously deviat(ed) from this basic concept” - its aim “regime change.”

Lavrov, al-Mualem and Zarif called for an unbiased, independent investigation of the April 4 CW attack.

No others are acceptable, including unreliable Turkish test results from alleged autopsies on corpses of three victims, implying Syrian responsibility for the incident.

In August 2014, then-UN Secretary General Bank Ki-moon, through his spokesman, commended Syria for destroying its chemical arsenal, calling its action a “significant achievement in the international community’s efforts to eliminate” these weapons under OPCW supervision.

Syrian Foreign Minister al-Moallem thanked his Russian and Iranian counterparts for their vital support in combating terrorism.

Lavrov insisted Washington and its allies respect Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity.

A joint statement said “(w)e stress that the crisis in Syria should be settled through a comprehensive diplomatic dialogue with the participation of representatives of all parties according to the UNSC resolutions, including resolution No. 2254 which provides for that the Syrian people alone shall determine their future.”

Al-Moallem said “(w)e did not use chemical weapons against terrorists nor against our people, and we condemn any use of chemical weapons anywhere and at any time.”

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s April 11 and 12 Moscow visit failed to accomplish its objective, wanting Russia to abandon Assad. Its support remains firm.

It’s a reliable Syria partner in combating US-supported terrorism. So is Iran - especially in the aftermath of Trump’s April 7 aggression.

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Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

His new book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

Visit his blog site at http://www.sjlendman.blogspot.com..