He also said Moscow was ultimately responsible for every chemical weapons attack in Syria since it became militarily involved in the conflict in 2015. Russian officials responded furiously, insisting that the US was inventing new chemical weapons strikes for the purpose of maligning Russia. On Saturday, Tillerson stood his ground, saying new evidence of recent chemical weapons attacks outside Damascus had emerged since his initial remarks. He also referenced Trump’s decision last year to respond to a chemical weapons attack with cruise missile strikes in Syria. As other US officials have done, Tillerson recognized that Turkey has legitimate security concerns along its border with Syria.

Source: Egypt Independent January 28, 2018 02:48 UTC