Alwaght- Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned on Monday against speculation and “provocation” over the suspected chemical weapons attack in Syrian town of Douma.
“The leaders exchanged opinions on the situation in Syria including the accusations against Damascus by a number of Western countries of using chemical weapons. The Russian side stressed the unacceptability of provocation and speculation on this matter,” the Kremlin said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Russia advocates a fair investigation into the alleged chemical attacks in Syria, and is strongly against assigning anyone the blame without finding any proof, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during Monday’s press conference.
"We are in total support of a fair and immediate investigation, when they ask for it. However, when the investigation is intended to come at a predetermined point - that is, it was done by Assad with Putin’s support - there are no grounds for a serious discussion," he noted.
"We had already commented on this situation before it became a reality," the top diplomat stressed. "Our military currently in Syria and the Syrian government have warned countless times that a serious provocation is being concocted, aimed at blaming Damascus for using chemical weapons against civilians."
"As for the reaction of our foreign colleagues in Washington, Paris, London, and other places, it is all quite simple: this was done by the regime, and if Russia supports the regime, then it is both Russia’s and Iran’s fault, and it is necessary to conduct an investigation," the foreign minister noted. "It is rather difficult for a logical person to understand the correlation between one and the other."
On April 7, a number of NGOs, including the White Helmets, alleged that chemical weapons were used in Douma, Eastern Ghouta. According to the statement published on the organization’s website on April 8, chlorine bombs had been dropped on the city, killing dozens and poisoning many locals who had to be brought to the hospital. The Russian Foreign Ministry dismissed that report as fake news.
The Russian Defense Ministry added that the White Helmets were notorious for spreading fake news. Regardless of that fact, on Sunday, when asked about the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria, Trump blamed Russia and Iran for supporting Assad’s government.
