Russian, Iranian top diplomats discuss situation in Syria after US missile strike - Russian Foreign Ministry

MOSCOW, April 10. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed the situation in Syria in the wake of the US missile strike in a telephone conversation on Monday. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the conversation was initiated by the Iranian side. "(The two ministers) discussed the situation in Syria after the US launched a missile strike on the airbase in that country," the ministry said. "Both sides emphasized that such aggressive actions against a sovereign independent country are a flagrant violation of international law, above all, the UN Charter, create threats for regional security and impair the fight against international terrorism." Lavrov and Zarif called for a thorough impartial investigation of the incident in Syria’s Idlib province, which led to numerous civilian casualties," the Russian Foreign Ministry added. The two ministers agreed to maintain close contacts "with a view to further coordinating cooperation on the pressing bilateral and international issues." The US military fired 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a military airfield in Syria’s Homs province overnight to Friday on orders issued by US President Donald Trump. The strike came in response to what Washington claims was Damascus’ use of chemical weapons in the Idlib province. The Pentagon said the alleged chemical attack was launched from this airfield. However, according the Russian Defense Ministry, on April 4, the Syrian air force delivered an airstrike on the eastern outskirts of Khan Sheikhoun to destroy militant facilities used to produce chemical bombs. These bombs were sent to Iraq and were also used in Aleppo. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow considers the US strike against an airbase in the Homs province an act of aggression against a sovereign nation. Read more