US Postpones Meeting with Russia on Syria

Local Editor

The United States postponed Monday a meeting with Russia on the Syrian crisis, as Washington appeared to be positioning for a potential military strike.

"Given our ongoing consultations about the appropriate response to the chemical weapons attack in Syria on August 21," Washington has decided to postpone Under Secretary Wendy Sherman and Ambassador Robert Ford's meeting with a Russian delegation that was scheduled for this week in the Hague, a senior State Department official said.

The official further stressed: "We will work with our Russian counterparts to reschedule the meeting. As we've long made clear - and as the events of August 21 reinforce - it is imperative that we reach a comprehensive and durable political solution to the crisis in Syria."

Officials said President Barack Obama, who held crisis talks Saturday with top aides, would make an "informed decision" on Syria over the alleged claims of chemical weapons.
In this context, an official claimed that "there is very little doubt at this point that a chemical weapon was used against civilians in this incident."

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that Washington had noted that Syria had offered to let UN inspectors view the site of the alleged attack on Monday, but said it was too little, too late, and that the evidence available at the site "has been significantly corrupted" due to the delay.

This comes as a US diplomatic offensive led by Secretary of State John Kerry, comments coming from the White House and signs the Pentagon is positioning ships closer to Syria fueled an impression that Obama may be getting ready to jettison his antipathy to new Middle Eastern entanglements and order a military strike.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team