Russia: No proof Syrian authorities used chemical weapons

Countries calling for military action against Syria have no proof the government is behind the alleged chemical weapons attack, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said.

France, Britain, Israel and some Usc ongressmen have said military action against President Bashar Assad’s regime should be an option if it has used such weapons.

Mr Lavrov said the countries calling for action have assumed the role of “both investigators and the UN Security Council” in probing the incident.

“They cannot produce evidence, but keep on saying that the ’red line’ has been crossed and they cannot wait any longer,” he said.

He likened the situation in Syria to the run-up before the 2003 military operation in Iraq.

He warned against military intervention in Syria, saying “the use of force without a sanction of the UN Security Council is a crude violation of the international law”.

He also blamed the Syrian opposition for manipulating reports of the attack in order to derail a peace conference on Syria.

Mr Lavrov said Russian and US experts were days away from meeting to arrange a peace conference in Geneva on Syria.

“This hysteria will definitely work against this meeting,” he said.