Hague Agrees with U.S. on Syria Chemical Weapons Use
Britain said Friday it agreed with the United States' assessment that the Syrian regime has used chemical weapons and called for a "strong, determined" international response.
Foreign Secretary William Hague said Britain would be discussing that response "urgently" with the United States, France and other countries, including at a G8 summit next week.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has put finding a political solution to the Syrian conflict on the agenda for the G8 meeting to be held in Northern Ireland on Monday and Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, a strong ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad, is among the world leaders attending.
"We welcome the decision of the United States to share this assessment with the international community," Hague said in a statement.
"We agree with the U.S. assessment that chemical weapons, including sarin, have been used in Syria by the Assad regime."
U.S. President Barack Obama's administration said Thursday it had conducted a review of intelligence reports and concluded that Syrian regime forces had used banned arms, including sarin nerve gas, in attacks that killed up to 150 people.
Hague said: "The United Kingdom has presented evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria to the U.N. investigation, and we have been working with our allies to get more and better information about the situation on the ground.
"We condemn the deplorable failure of the Assad regime to cooperate with the investigative mission.
"The crisis demands a strong, determined and coordinated response from the international community.
"We will be discussing that response urgently with the United States, France and other countries, including at the G8."
Source: Agence France Presse
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