Syria -= RT coverage

Putin: Syria chemical attack is ‘rebels' provocation in hope of intervention’

The alleged chemical weapons use in Syria is a provocation carried out by the rebels to attract a foreign-led strike, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the G20 summit

RT

6 September, 2013

There was no 50/50 split of opinion on the notion of a military strike against the Syrian President Bashar Assad, Putin stressed refuting earlier assumptions.

Only Turkey, Canada, Saudi Arabia and France joined the US push for intervention, he said, adding that the UK Prime Minister’s position was not supported by his citizens.

Russia, China, India, Indonesia, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa and Italy were among the major world’s economies clearly opposed to military intervention.

President Putin said the G20 nations spent the “entire” Thursday evening discussing the Syrian crisis, which was followed by Putin’s bilateral meeting with UK Prime Minister David Cameron that lasted till 3am Moscow time.

Russia “will help Syria” in the event of a military strike, Putin stressed as he responded to a reporter’s question at the summit.

“Will we help Syria? We will. And we are already helping, we send arms, we cooperate in the economics sphere, we hope to expand our cooperation in the humanitarian sphere, which includes sending humanitarian aid to support those people – the civilians – who have found themselves in a very dire situation in this country,” Putin said.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin gestures during a press conference at the end of the G20 summit on September 6, 2013 in Saint Petersburg (AFP Photo)

Putin said he sat down with US President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the G20 summit and talked for about half an hour in “a friendly atmosphere”.

Although the Russian and the American leaders maintained different positions regarding the Syrian issue, Putin said they “hear” and understand each other.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry will continue discussing the situation in Syria “in the short run,” Putin said.

Meanwhile, President Obama reiterated in his summit speech that the US government believes Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces were behind the chemical weapons use.

Obama pledged to make a good case on the issue for both the international community and the American people, saying many nations are already “comfortable” with the US’ opinion.

While admitting “a number of countries” at the summit stressed any military action plan should go through the UN Security Council, Obama said the US is in a different “camp” that questioned the UNSC effectiveness.

“Given the Security Council’s paralysis on this issue, if we are serious about upholding a ban on chemical weapons use, then an international response is required and that will not come through the Security Council action,” Obama said.

'A dangerous precedent'

Both presidents stressed that the situation in Syria could create a dangerous precedent, but supported their points with contrasting arguments.

Obama stressed his “goal” and US “responsibility” was to maintain international norms on banning chemical weapon use, saying he wanted the enforcement to be “real.”

US President Barack Obama answers a question during a press conference in Saint Petersburg on September 6, 2013 on the sideline of the G20 summit (AFP Photo)

“When there is a breach this brazen of a norm this important, and the international community is paralyzed and frozen and doesn’t act, then that norm begins to unravel. And if that norm unravels, then other norms and prohibitions start unraveling, and that makes for a more dangerous world,” Obama said.

Putin, on the contrary, stressed that setting precedents of military action outside a UN Security Council resolution would mean the world’s smaller countries can no longer feel safe against the interests of the more powerful ones.

“Small countries in the modern world feel increasingly vulnerable and insecure. One starts getting the impression that a more powerful country can at any time and at its own discretion use force against them,” Putin said, citing the earlier statement made by the South African President.

Such practice would also make it much harder to convince North Korea to give up its nuclear program, Putin pointed out.

The meeting of the leaders of the major world economies - G20 - took place in St. Petersburgh, Russia. The participants of the summit focused on economic issues during round-table talks, including unemployment, the lack of global investment, and better international financial regulation. While on the sidelines the conversation shifted to the issue of the alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria and the possibility of military action in the war-torn country.

Troubled waters: Naval forces line Syrian shores

The alleged chemical weapons use in Syria is a provocation carried out by the rebels to attract a foreign-led strike, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at the G20 summit

RT

6 September, 2013

Mounting pressure for a Western strike on Syria has seen naval forces both friendly and hostile to Damascus build up off the embattled country’s coastline.

The potential of a US strike against Syria in response to an August 21 chemical weapons attack in a Damascus suburb gained steam on Wednesday, when a resolution backing the use of force against President Bashar Assad's government cleared the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on a 10-7 vote.

President Obama has decided to put off military action until at least September 9, when the seemingly recalcitrant US House of Representatives reconvenes to vote on the measure.

Following the August 21 Ghouta Attack, which killed anywhere between 355 to 1,729 people, the diplomatic scramble to launch or stave off a military strike on Syria was mirrored by the movement of naval forces in the Eastern Mediterranean, off the coast of Syria.

The deployment of US and allied naval warships in the region has been matched by the deployment of Russian naval warships in the region.

While the Western vessels have in many cases been deployed in the event a military strike against Syria gets a green light, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Russia’s naval presence is needed to protect national security interests and is not a threat to any nation.

Below is a brief summary of the naval hardware currently amassed off Syria’s shores.

USA

The US Navy has five Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers off the coast of Syria, which its top admiral says is “fully ready” for a wide range of possible actions.

The USS Ramage, USS Mahan, USS Gravely and USS Barry are each armed with dozens of Tomahawk cruise missiles, which have a range of about 1,000 nautical miles (1,151 miles) and are used for precise targeting.

The ships are also equipped with surface-to-air missiles capable of defending the vessels from air attacks.

On August 29, the USS Stout was sent to relieve the USS Mahan, but a defense official told AFP that both ships might remain in the area for the time being.

Adm. Jonathan Greenert, the chief of naval operations, told an audience at the American Enterprise Institute on Thursday that the US ships are prepared for what he called a "vast spectrum of operations," including launching Tomahawk cruise missiles at targets in Syria, as was done in Libya in 2011, and protecting themselves in the event of retaliation, AP reports.

In addition to the destroyers, the United States may well have one of its four guided missile submarines off the coast of Syria. At one time these subs were equipped with nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles. Nowadays, they are capable of carrying up to 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles.

It was also announced on Monday that the US had deployed the USS San Antonio, an amphibious transport ship, to the Eastern Mediterranean.

The USS San Antonio, with several helicopters and hundreds of Marines on board, is “on station in the Eastern Mediterranean” but “has received no specific tasking,” a defense official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

The deployment of the USS Antonio comes despite promises from President Obama that no amphibious landing is on the agenda, as the US has ostensibly ruled out any “boots on the ground.”

While the wording of the draft resolution set to be put before the House does not permit a ground invasion, the wording of the text could potentially allow troops to carry out non-offensive operations within Syria, including securing chemical weapons stockpiles and production facilities.

On Monday, it was also announced the USS Nimitz super carrier had moved into the Red Sea, though it had not been given orders to be part of the planning for a limited US military strike on Syria, US officials told ABC News.

The other ships in the strike group are the cruiser USS Princeton and the destroyers USS William P. Lawrence, USS Stockdale and USS Shoup.

The official said the carrier strike group has not been assigned a mission, but was shifted in the event its resources are needed to “maximize available options.”

The USS Harry S. Truman aircraft carrier and strike group is also in the northern Arabian Sea.

Russia

Russia, Syria’s longtime ally and primary arms supplier, has its only overseas naval base located in the Syrian port of Tartus, which has reportedly been used to support Russia’s growing number of naval patrols on the Mediterranean. However, Russia insists recent efforts to bolster its naval presence in the region are not in response to Western threats of a military strike.

Reported movements of many Russian ships in the region are coming from anonymous Russian defense ministry sources and have not been confirmed. RT contacted the Russian Navy to ask for confirmation of the reported ship movements, though no comment was forthcoming.

On Friday, for example, the large landing ship, Nikolai Filchenkov, was reportedly dispatched from the Ukrainian port city of Sevastopol for the Russian Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, from where it is eventually expected to reach the Syrian coast, a source told Interfax News Agency.

"The ship will make call in Novorossiisk, where it will take on board special cargo and set off for the designated area of its combat duty in the eastern Mediterranean," the source said.

RIA news agency quoted an unnamed senior naval source as saying on Friday that the frigate, Smetlivy, would leave for the Mediterranean on September 12-14, and the corvette Shtil and missile boat Ivanovets would approach Syria at the end of the month.

The Russian destroyer Nastoichivy, which is the flagship of the Baltic fleet, is also expected to join the group in the region.

Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov, who was unable to comment on specific reports, said on Thursday the Russian navy currently had a "pretty strong group" there.

"The Russian navy does not intend to take part directly or indirectly in a possible regional conflict," he told the state Rossiya 24 broadcaster.

"Our navy vessels are a guarantee of stability, guarantee of peace, an attempt to hold back other forces ready to start military action in the region."

Also reportedly in place in the eastern Mediterranean are the frigate Neustrashimy, as well as the landing ships Alexander Shabalin, the Admiral Nevelsky and the Peresvet.

They are expected to be joined by the guided-missile cruiser Moskva.

The Moskva, set to arrive in a little over a week’s time, will take over operations from a naval unit in the region.

"The plans of the naval unit under the command of Rear Admiral Valery Kulikov had to be changed a little. Instead of visiting a Cape Verde port, the cruiser Moskva is heading to the Strait of Gibraltar. In about ten days, it will enter the eastern Mediterranean, where it will replace the destroyer Admiral Panteleyev as the flagship of the operative junction of the Russian Navy," a source told Interfax on Wednesday.

Panteleyev incidentally, only arrived in the east Mediterranean Sea on Wednesday after leaving the Far-Eastern port city of Vladivostok on March 19 to join the Russian standing naval force as its flagship.

The SSV-201 reconnaissance ship, Priazovye, is also reportedly on its way to join the group in the Eastern Mediterranean. Accompanied by the two landing ships, Minsk and Novocherkassk, the intelligence ship passed through the ‘Istanbul Strait’ on Thursday, which helps form the boundary between Europe and Asia.

FRANCE

On August 31, French military officials confirmed the frigate Chevalier Paul, which specializes in anti-missile capabilities, and the transport ship, Dixmude, were in the Mediterranean. French officials denied they are in the region to participate in military action against Syria, but were rather taking part in training and operation preparations.

Despite their presence in the region, France currently has no ship-based missiles, so any offensive action would come from the air in the form of long-range Scalp missiles, similar to those the nation used in Kosovo in 1999 and in Libya in 2011, Time reports.

Italy

Two Italian warships set sail for Lebanon on Wednesday in a bid to protect 1,100 Italian soldiers in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, Syria’s southeastern neighbor, Agence France Presse reported.

The Italian ANSA news agency reported that a frigate and a torpedo destroyer boat departed from Italy's southeastern coast on Wednesday and would provide additional protection to the soldiers in the event the Syrian conflict further deteriorates.

UK

As of August 29, the Royal Navy's Response Force Task Group was deployed in the Mediterranean as part of long-planned exercise Cougar 13. The force includes helicopter carrier HMS Illustrious, type-23 frigates HMS Westminster and HMS Montrose, amphibious warship HMS Bulwark and six Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships. 
The Trafalgar-class nuclear submarine HMS Tireless was also believed to be in the area at the time, after it was detected in Gibraltar.

On the same day that British media started touting Britain’s “arsenal of military might” which would be available in the event of intervention, British Prime Minister David Cameron lost a vote endorsing military action against Syria by 13 votes. In light of the shocking parliamentary defeat, Foreign Secretary William Hague said the UK would only be able to offer the US “diplomatic support.”

The UK’s Conservative Chancellor, George Osborne, confirmed that the UK would not seek a further vote on action in Syria.

Syria 'chemical weapons' crisis: LIVE UPDATES

RT,

6 September, 2013

Friday, September 6 

20:51 GMT: The UN has drawn up emergency plans for a military strike on Syria, but at the same time will continue to deliver aid to the region, UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos said after her trip to Damascus, AFP reported.

"We continue to update and look at our contingency planning," Amos stated, noting that the UN has great concern for its staff on the ground and still has “a commitment to continue our humanitarian operations.”

20:35 GMT: US Deputy National Security Adviser Tony Blinken, an aide close to President Obama, told NPR Friday that military action in Syria is unlikely without congressional approval. Blinken asserted that “the president has the authority to act” if Congress votes down the proposal next week, but “it’s neither his desire nor intention to use that authority absent Congress backing him.”

18:55 GMT: Syrian President Bashar Assad barely used any of his chemical weapons stockpile in the alleged attack near Damascus on August 21, according to the US Ambassador to the United Nations. 

"We assess that although Assad used more chemical weapons on August 21 than he had before, he has barely put a dent in his enormous stockpile," Samantha Power said at the Center for American Progress think-tank in Washington. 

"We have exhausted the alternatives" to military action, she said, adding that Assad counted on Russia’s support.

17:23 GMT:  Friday, September 6th, a so-called Tweet storm rages on the popular networking service for awareness on #OpSyria911. Organizers of the storm, Anonymous hacktivist group, urged opponents of a military intervention to “call, fax, email, and write a letter to your representatives and voice your disdain for any military actions intruded on the Syrian people.”

15:59 GMT: The Leaders and Representatives of Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States of America issued a joint statement on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Nations Leader’s Meeting in Saint Petersburg, Russia regarding the crisis in Syria. 

“The international norm against the use of chemical weapons is longstanding and universal.  The use of chemical weapons anywhere diminishes the security of people everywhere.  Left unchallenged, it increases the risk of further use and proliferation of these weapons,” the joint statement issued by the White House read. 

“We condemn in the strongest terms the horrific chemical weapons attack in the suburbs of Damascus on August 21st that claimed the lives of so many men, women, and children.  The evidence clearly points to the Syrian government being responsible for the attack, which is part of a pattern of chemical weapons use by the regime. 

We call for a strong international response to this grave violation of the world’s rules and conscience that will send a clear message that this kind of atrocity can never be repeated. Those who perpetrated these crimes must be held accountable.”

The statement went on the show its support for a UN Security Council resolution, but “recognized” the Council had remained paralyzed for two years.

The statement further condemned “in the strongest terms” human rights violations in Syria on all sides.

15:52 GMT: France says that any military action against Syria would only entail military targets so as to avoid civilian casualties. President Francois Hollande said all G20 states has condemned the use of chemical weapons and agreed they were deployed in Syria. He further warned that if the UN Security Council could not agree on a response to the attack, a coalition must be created to respond. He did say, however, that France would wait on conclusions from UN inspectors investigating the August 21 attack in a Damascus suburb before deciding to act.

"We shall await the report of the inspectors just as we will await (US) Congress," he told a news conference after a summit of G20 nations in St. Petersburg, in reference to US President Barack Obama's decision to ask for Congressional approval before launching a strike.

15:38 GMT: Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday almost all of the leaders at the G20 summit in St. Petersburg accepted that an operation needed to be carried out against Syria in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack in  a Damascus Suburb on August 21.

"Almost all the leaders who have attended the summit are closely following the massacre the Syrian regime carried out on its people and the leaders have expressed that an operation is extremely necessary against Damascus," Reuters cites Erdogan as saying.

15:20 GMT: The Russian Foreign Ministry has asked the world to consider claims made by Mother Agnes Mariam el-Salib – mother superior of St. James Monastery in Qara, Syria – who told RT there is proof the footage of the alleged chemical attack in Syria was fabricated.

“I maintain that the whole affair was a frame-up. It had been staged and prepared in advance with the goal of framing the Syrian government as the perpetrator,” she said. 

“The key evidence is that Reuters made these files public at 6.05 in the morning. The chemical attack is said to have been launched between 3 and 5 o’clock in the morning in Guta. How is it even possible to collect a dozen different pieces of footage, get more than 200 kids and 300 young people together in one place, give them first aid and interview them on camera, and all that in less than three hours? Is that realistic at all? As someone who works in the news industry, you know how long all of it would take.”

15:15: GMT: US President Barack Obama refused to say directly what he would do if Congress doesn't approve Syria strikes when asked the question at the press conference during the G20 summit. 

However he said that “given Security Council paralysis on this issue, if we are serious about upholding a ban on chemical weapons use, then an international response is required, and that will not come through Security Council action.”

15:07 GMT: The alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria was “carried out by rebels as a provocation” to create the possibility for a foreign intervention, Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters at a press conference during the final day of the G20 summit.

While Russia, China, India, Indonesia, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa and Italy are among the major world’s economies which oppose the intervention, only Turkey, Canada, Saudi Arabia and France join the US in its call for military action in the war-torn country, adding that the UK Prime Minister’s position was not supported by his citizens.

In case of intervention, Putin stressed that Russia will help Syria as “we are already helping, we send arms, we cooperate in the economic sphere, we hope to expand our cooperation in the humanitarian sphere, which includes sending humanitarian aid to support those people – the civilians – who have found themselves in a very dire situation in this country.”

13:54 GMT: The discussion of the Syrian issue at the G20 summit in St Petersburg has not decreased the possibility of a military operation against the republic, says British Prime Minister David Cameron.  He said that although the talks were very helpful, the summit was never about making a decision on the matter.

If the United Nations Security Council fails to agree on a resolution authorizing military intervention in the Syrian conflict, action without its approval can’t be ruled out either, Cameron said.

The UK, along with several other members of the group, agreed to seek free access for humanitarian aid to Syria through the UN, he told a media conference at the end of the gathering.

13:42 GMT: Russia President Vladimir Putin and US leader Barack Obama have discussed Syrian crisis on the sidelines of G20 summit in St Petersburg, says Russian presidential aid Yuri Ushakov. However, “there remains a difference in opinions” following the meeting, Ushakov said. Putin and Obama have agreed to continue discussing the settlement for the Syrian crisis on the level of their foreign ministers.

13:03 GMT: A military strike on Syria will put an end to all the efforts made by the UN-Arab League envoy on Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi, to politically resolve the conflict, agreed the participates of the G20 summit breakfast meeting, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"I cannot say that this was the prevailing opinion, but many responsible states are coming to a very clear understanding that the use of force, bypassing the UN Security Council, will put an end to all efforts for a political resolution and carrying out the Geneva-2 peace conference made by Lakhdar Brahimi," Lavrov said.

"Our common conclusion is to do everything possible to prevent the military scenario in Syria," Lavrov added. "There is still time for this."

The US did not participate, while Canada, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Senegal, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Turkey, France and Russia were present at the meeting.

12:40 GMT: The Turkish Prime Minster Tayyip Erdogan has said that almost all leaders at the G20 summit in St Petersburg accept the need for a military operation against Syria.

12:00 GMT: The U.S. has ordered its diplomats to leave Lebanon as Congress debates Syria military strikes, in a move that will be interpreted that the possibility of a military strikes has moved a step closer. 

The US State Department has ordered nonessential U.S. diplomats and family members to leave Lebanon due to security concerns. They have also urged US citizens to avoid all travel to Lebanon because of current safety and security concerns.

"The Department of State drew down non-emergency personnel and family members from Embassy Beirut due to threats to U.S. Mission facilities and personnel," a statement on the Beirut embassy's website said.

11:55 GMT: The Geneva II peace conference is under threat in the current situation, said UN-Arab League envoy on Syria Lakhdar Brahimi during the G20 summit held in St. Petersburg, Russia.

11:50 GMT: The Syrian government has announced that it is offering a bounty to anyone who captures a "non-Syrian terrorist", or helps to apprehend one, state television said. A bounty of 500,000 Syrian pounds (roughly $4,000) will be offered for capture, while 200,000 Syrian pounds (about $1,500) goes to anyone who gives information regarding terrorist locations.

The statement said the identities of those who provided information would be kept secret and their "protection ensured". Concerning Syrian rebels who informed on their comrades, state television added, that they would be granted amnesty and “their affairs will be settled.”

11:29 GMT: Moscow has warned Washington against staging attacks on Syria’s chemical weapons depots.

"With particular concern, we perceive the fact that among possible targets for attacks are objects of military infrastructure securing the safety of Syrian chemical weapons arsenals,” according to a statement in the comment of the Department of Information and Media relations of the Russian Foreign Ministry, issued on Friday.

“In this regard, we would like to warn the US government and its allies from inflicting any assaults on chemical facilities and adjacent territories,” the document says.

11:22 GMT: The crisis in Syria should be resolved through political means and not a military strike, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his US counterpart Barack Obama during the G20 summit in St. Petersburg in Russia. 

"A political solution is the only right way out for the Syrian crisis, and a military strike cannot solve the problem from the root," Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying. "We expect certain countries to have a second thought before action," he added.

10:50 GMT: The UN nuclear watchdog has confirmed receipt of a request from Russia to estimate the impact if a missile were to hit a small Syrian reactor that contains radioactive uranium. 

"I can confirm that the IAEA has received a formal request from the Russian Federation. The agency is considering the questions raised," IAEA spokeswoman Gill Tudor said in an email to Reuters. 

A military strike on Syria could have catastrophic effects if the research reactor near Damascus was struck "by design or by chance," Russia said in a statement earlier this week.

10:32 GMT: British scientists found traces of sarin gas in soil and fabric samples collected in Syria, the UK Ministry of Defence has confirmed earlier reports, BBC states.

9:43 GMT: EU defense ministers have agreed that embattled Syrian President Bashar Assad used chemical weapons in an attack in a Damascus suburb on August 21, reports AFP. 

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama told G20 leaders in St. Petersburg that the US was “confident” Assad’s forces had used chemical weapons. Obama urged the G20 leaders to support the international ban on chemical weapons and authorize the use of military force against Syria.

7:55 GMT: A Russian parliamentary delegation will not travel to Washington to meet with Congress to discuss Syria, announced Russian lawmaker and State Duma representative, Sergey Naryshkin.

03:48 GMT: US President Barack Obama instructed the Pentagon to expand the list of potential Syria targets as a reaction to new intelligence that Syrian President Bashar Assad has been moving troops and chemical weapons equipment, military officials told the The New York Times. This means that the original list of at least 50 major sites will be further expanded.

03:20 GMT: The US State Department responded to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s remarks that US Secretary of State John Kerry “lied” about the influence of Al-Qaeda in Syria, saying that it is “preposterous” and a mischaracterization of what America’s top diplomat actually said. 

Kerry is “not losing sleep after such a preposterous comment that was based on an inaccurate quote and was completely mischaracterized,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters in Washington.

Putin made his remarks on Wednesday, reportedly referring to the Secretary of State’s testimony before the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee a day earlier, where Kerry said that Al-Qaeda’s presence within the Syrian opposition has not been increasing.

02:00 GMT: US Navy destroyers in the Mediterranean are “fully ready” to launch cruise missiles into Syria as part of a US military campaign that would not involve “extraordinary” monetary costs, a top admiral said Thursday.

Greenert, a chief naval operations officer who focuses on preparedness of Navy forces, also seemed to confirm the rough estimate made by US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Wednesday in front of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, when he told Congress that a US campaign in Syria would likely cost "tens of millions" of dollars.

"The numbers are nagging but they're not extraordinary at this point," Greenert said at an event held by the conservative think-tank American Enterprise Institute, though defense budget analysts say Hagel's figure is a low estimate.

'Obama to attack Syria regardless how Congress votes'

 America's envoy to the United Nations singled out Russia for criticism - for its outspoken opposition to strikes. And that's as the UN chief himself ruled out a military solution to the Syrian crisis - warning that a strike would have tragic consequences and fuel sectarian violence in the region. Investigative journalist Charlie McGrath has commented on the U.S. envoy's statements - saying international trust in Washington's words has all but eroded.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuXIc3SkGY0