U.S. National Security Council demands that Russia and Iran cease supporting Syrian government
The U.S. National Security Council has demanded that Russia and Iran cease supporting the Syrian government due to its use of chemical weapons, according to a White House press release.
Referencing the results of a year-long investigation by the United Nations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) on the use of chemical weapons in Syria, in which it was determined that the Syrian government used industrial chlorine as a weapon against its own people in 2014 and 2015, representative of the National Security Council Ned Price said “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the Assad regime's defiance of the longstanding global norm against chemical weapons use and Syria's abrogation of its responsibilities under the Chemical Weapons Convention, which it joined in 2013.”
“We strongly urge all UN member states and parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention, including Russia and Iran, which continue to conduct military operations on behalf of the Assad regime, to unequivocally support these efforts and sustain our shared commitment to the international standard against chemical weapons use,” Price added.
The National Security Council representative also said Russia’s support of the Assad government allows Damascus to continue its military campaign against its own people, which is “in violation of international law”.
“Together, we must send a strong signal that the use of weapons of mass destruction will not be tolerated by the international community,” Price concluded.