Russia warns of serious consequences from US strike in Syria

United Nations/Moscow/Beirut: Russia warned on Friday that US cruise missile strikes on a Syrian air base could have extremely serious consequences as President Donald Trump s first major foray into a foreign conflict opened up a rift between Moscow and Washington. The warships USS Porter and USS Ross in the Mediterranean Sea launched dozens of Tomahawk missiles at the Shayrat air base which the Pentagon says was involved in a chemical weapons attack this week. It was Trump s biggest foreign policy decision since taking office in January and the kind of direct intervention in Syria s six-year-old civil war his predecessor Barack Obama avoided.The strikes were in reaction to what Washington says was a poison gas attack by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad that killed at least 70 people in rebel-held territory. Syria denies it carried out the attack.They catapulted Washington into confrontation with Russia which has advisers on the ground aiding its close ally Assad. We strongly condemn the illegitimate actions by the US. The consequences of this for regional and international stability could be extremely serious Russia s deputy UN envoy Vladimir Safronkov told a meeting of the UN Security Council on Friday.Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev charged that the US strikes were one step away from clashing with Russia s military.US officials informed Russian forces ahead of the missile strikes and avoided hitting Russian personnel. Satellite imagery suggests the base houses Russian special forces and helicopters part of the Kremlin s effort to help Assad fight Islamic State and other militant groups.Trump has frequently urged improved relations with Russia strained under Obama over Syria Ukraine and other issues was hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Thursday night when the attack occurred. Treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin in Florida with Trump said on Friday the United States would announce additional sanctions on Syria in the near future but offered no specifics.Russia s defence ministry responded to the attack by calling in the US military attache in Moscow to say that at midnight Moscow time (5 pm EDT) it would close down a communications line used to avoid accidental clashes between Russian and U.S. forces in Syria Interfax new agency said. US warplanes frequently attack Islamic State militants in Syria and come close to Russian forces. Prepared to do more US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said on Friday the http://buybacklinksz.full-design.com/The-Importance-of-Backlinks-5494730 Trump administration was ready to take further steps if needed. We are prepared to do more but we hope that will not be necessary she told the UN Security Council. The United States will not stand by when chemical weapons are used. It is in our vital national security interest to prevent the spread and use of chemical weapons. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson who also was in Florida with Trump and is scheduled to go to Moscow next week said he was disappointed but not surprised by the Russian reaction because it showed continued support for Assad.Iran which supports Assad and has been criticized by Trump condemned the strike with President Hassan Rouhani saying it would bring only destruction and danger to the region and the globe. US officials called the intervention a one-off intended to deter future chemical weapons attacks and not an expansion of the US role in the Syrian war. US allies from Asia Europe and the Middle East expressed support for the attack if sometimes cautiously.The action is likely to be interpreted as a signal to Russia and countries such as North Korea China and Iran where Trump has faced foreign policy tests early in his presidency of his willingness to use force.The United States is now likely to be more aggressive in pursuing intelligence about Syria s suspected chemical weapons program. The Pentagon has also signalled interest in determining any Russian complicity. At a minimum the Russians failed to rein in the Syrian regime activity a senior US military official told reporters speaking on condition of anonymity.The official also said the United States had been unable to determine if a Russian or Syrian aircraft bombed a hospital that was treating victims of the chemical attack.Russia joined the war on Assad s behalf in 2015 turning the momentum in his favour. Although Moscow supports opposing sides in the war between Assad and rebels the United States and Russia say they share a single main enemy Islamic State.Tillerson said the strike took out about 20% of the seventh wing of the Syrian air force and hit a fuelling facility. The base s runway was still in use.Assad s office said Syria would strike its enemies harder.Damascus and Moscow denied Syrian forces were behind the gas attack but Western countries dismissed their explanation that chemicals leaked from a rebel weapons depot after an air strike.The Syrian army said the US attack killed six people and called it blatant aggression that made the United States a partner of terrorist groups including Islamic State. There was no independent confirmation of civilian casualties.US lawmakers from both parties on Friday backed Trump s action but demanded he spell out a broader strategy for dealing with the conflict and consult with Congress on http://buybacklinksz.tinyblogging.com/SEO-Course-Backlinking-Your-Way-To-The-Top-4353589 any further action.The UN Security Council had been negotiating a resolution proposed by the United States France and Britain on Tuesday to condemn the gas attack and push the Syrian government to cooperate with international investigators.Russia said the text was unacceptable and diplomats said it was unlikely to http://buybacklinksz.blogdon.net/10-effective-ways-to-build-blog-backlinks-2810320 be put to a vote.Moscow wants explanationRussia expects Tillerson to explain Washington s stance when he visits Moscow next week Interfax news agency cited a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman as saying.Washington has long backed rebels fighting Assad in a multi-sided civil war that has killed more than 400 000 people and driven half of Syrians from their homes since 2011.The United States has conducted air strikes against Islamic State which controls territory in eastern and northern Syria and a small number of U.S. troops are helping rebel militias.Asked whether the strikes set back any efforts to work with Russia to defeat Islamic State sometimes known as ISIS White House spokesman Sean Spicer said: There can be a shared commitment to defeat ISIS and also agree that you can t gas your own people. Tuesday s attack was the first time since 2013 that Syria was accused of using sarin a banned nerve agent it was meant to have given up under a Russian-brokered UN-enforced deal that persuaded Obama to call off air strikes four years ago.Video depicted limp bodies and children choking while rescuers tried to wash off the poison gas. Russian state television blamed rebels and did not show footage of victims. The US strikes cheered Assad s enemies after months when Western powers appeared to grow increasingly resigned to his staying in power. But opposition figures said an isolated assault was far from the decisive intervention they seek.Neither the Trump administration nor its predecessor has laid out a policy aimed at ending the Syrian conflict. ReutersMichelle NicholsAndrew OsbornTom PerryTopics: Syria US Russia US Missile Strike Gas Attack Photo President Trump after making a statement on the missile strikes in Syria at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida on Thursday. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times WASHINGTON President Trump ordered the military on Thursday to carry out a missile attack on Syrian forces for using chemical weapons against civilians. The unilateral attack lacked authorization from Congress or from the United Nations Security Council raising the question of whether he had legal authority to commit the act of war.Mr. Trump and top members of his administration initially justified the operation as a punishment for Syria s violating the ban on chemical weapons and an attempt at deterrence. But they did not make clear whether that was a legal argument or just a policy rationale.The strike raises two sets of legal issues. One involves international law and when it is lawful for any nation to attack another. The other involves domestic law and who gets to decide the president or Congress whether the United States should attack another country.Did Trump have clear authority under international law to attack Syria?No. The United Nations Charter a treaty the United States has ratified recognizes two justifications for using force on another country s soil without its consent: the permission of the Security Council or a self-defense claim. In the case of Syria the United Nations did not approve the strike and the Defense Department justified it as intended to deter the regime from using chemical weapons again which is not self-defense. Continue reading the main story The United States fired 59 Tomahawk missiles on Thursday at an airfield in Syria from which officials said a chemical weapons attack originated this week. Russian forces which were in the area were given no more than 90 minutes notice of the attack. President Trump drew support from Republicans who had opposed plans for a 2013 strike. Continue reading the main story Mumbai: In an almost anti-climactic finish to an otherwise record-breaking week benchmark stock indices weakened on Friday led by worries about geopolitical tensions after the US missile strike in Syria and tepid sentiments in Asian markets. The truncated trading week was characterised by a sense of optimism as the continued liquidity flush helped indices scale new highs. On Friday the BSE Sensex settled 0.7% or 220 points lower at 29 706 and the NSE Nifty fell 0.7% or 63 points to close at 9 198. Both indices gained 0.3% this week. The Sensex on Wednesday touched a record 30 007.48 for the first time since March 2015 and the Nifty also touched a lifetime high of 9 265. Though the passage of the GST bill boosted optimism among traders the overarching theme was the unabated institutional buying said market experts. While the GST and UP election win by the BJP have helped constant liquidity from both FIIs and DIIs has been the driving factor in the rally we ve been seeing said Vaibhav Sanghavi co-CEO Avendus Capital Public Markets Alternative Strategies LLP . Not only have there been a record number of subscriptions in do mestic mutual funds so far this year last month there has also been a marked interest in emerging markets from foreign investors. While foreign investors bought shares to the tune of 4 697.77 crore during the week domestic investors pumped in Rs 1 133.01 crore into the market. It was expected that a new tax rate from April 1would lead foreign investors to tone down their purchases of Indian equities. Foreign investors will have to pay a tax rate of 7.5% on short-term gains from stocks while the General anti avoidance regulations(or GAAR) has also kicked in on April 1. We ve seen money coming in even after March 31 from foreign investors. They didn t buy much during the start of the year but have resumed now. So the new tax rules do not seem to be a problem said Sampath Reddy chief invest ment officer at Bajaj Allianz. Concerns over the fourth quarter earnings might temper sentiment in the days ahead as valuations of stocks across sectors rise to new levels. If there was a big concern regarding fourth quarter earnings we would have seen http://buybacklinksz.thezenweb.com/Let-s-describe-the-importance-of-Backlinks--6169893 some pull-back in the rally. Instead if there s a positive surprise in the numbers the markets may have more reason to cheer said Kunj Bansal ED Centrum Wealth Management. BSE Realty and Capital Goods indices saw rallies to the tune of 4.75% and 5.9% this week. RBI s decision to keep rates unchanged at 6.25% did not dampen sentiment. Realty stocks like Sobha and Unitech were in focus during the week while a surge in index movers like RIL HDFC Bank HDFC and L&T helped the broader market maintain higher levels. (Want to get this briefing by email? Here s the sign-up.)Good evening. Here s the latest. Photo Credit Drew Angerer/Getty Images 1. The American military strike against Syria threatened Russian-American relations.President Vladimir Putin said the airstrike on a Syrian air base in retaliation for this week s lethal chemical attack was a significant blow to the relationship. He suspended an agreement to coordinate air operations to avoid accidental conflict.U.S. officials faulted Russia for not enforcing a 2013 agreement to eliminate Syria s chemical weapons. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is to meet Mr. Putin in Moscow on Tuesday.The attack was the greatest risk so far of Donald Trump s young presidency. And at the United Nations the American ambassador Nikki Haley above warned that the country was prepared to take further action. She provided no legal rationale for the attack. Continue reading http://buybacklinksz.canariblogs.com/backlink-your-way-to-the-top-of-google-by-tapping-into-seven-easy-sources-of-backlinks-2172976 the main story 1 Congress is (mostly) all for it With few exceptions congressional members expressed support for Donald Trump s missile strikes in Syria. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell said Trump was authorized to conduct the strikes and House minority leader Nancy Pelosi called the attack proportional . Trump jumps into quagmire Popular in Congress: this sort of thing. Photograph: Ford Williams/AFP/Getty Images But not all members Senator Rand Paul dissented saying: Our prior interventions in this region have done nothing to make us safer. Other members said that Trump should consult with Congress before taking future military action. US loses Russia back channel After meeting Gen Joseph Dunford of the joint chiefs of staff. Photograph: Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images Targeted base still in use report Reuters Top News (@Reuters) JUST IN: Syrian warplanes take off from air base hit by U.S. carry out strikes in Homs countryside - Syrian observatory for human rights April 7 2017 Trump ally Farage registers skepticism Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) Many Trump voters will be worried about this military intervention. Where will it end? April 7 2017 2 Clinton on misogyny Hillary Clinton told a Women in the World summit that she spends a lot of time wrestling with the fact that 53% of white women voted for Trump. Certainly misogyny played a role she said. Read Amber Jamieson s report Just sayin . Photograph: Drew Angerer/Getty Images 3 Become a Guardian member It might take just a minute to catch up on the latest politics news. But good journalism takes time and costs money. If you like the Guardian s politics coverage please consider joining us by becoming a member for only 6.99 a month. Thanks for reading! Become a Guardian member 4 Trump considers shake-up report Frustrated by White House infighting the president is considering moving chief of staff Reince Priebus and chief strategist Steve Bannon out of their current roles the Wall Street Journal reported. Read the report One of these things is not like the other. Photograph: Carlos Barria/Reuters 5 Trump-Xi meeting concludes Trump claimed tremendous progress had been made in his one-day summit with Chinese president Xi Jinping who said: President Trump has given us a warm welcome and treated us very well. Meeting as missiles fly Pallin around at Mar-a-Lago. Photograph: Carlos Barria/Reuters ... and another thing: Olivia Messer (@OliviaMesser) Nobody puts Spicey in the corner says Spicer to himself as he sits in the corner. pic.twitter.com/AQDOiSDRud April 7 2017