Reaction to US, France and UK military response to Syria's chemical weapon attack
WASHINGTON (AP)- Friday night President Donald Trump announced the United States launched an coordinated military response to the April 7, chemical weapons attack in Syria.
Leaders from around the world are reacting to this strike; here are some of their responses:
Iran
Iran's state-run IRNA news agency says Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called the U.S.-led airstrikes on Syria a "military crime." He spoke at a meeting with Iranian officials and ambassadors from some Islamic countries.
The report quotes Khamenei as calling the leaders of the United States, Britain and France — the countries that launched the attack — "criminals."
United States Lawmakers
Congressional leaders are supporting President Donald Trump's decision to launch airstrikes against Syrian President Bashar Assad in retaliation for an apparent chemical attack against civilians — although there are some reservations.
House Speaker Paul Ryan is praising Trump's "decisive action in coordination with our allies," adding, "We are united in our resolve."
Senate Armed Service Committee Chairman John McCain is applauding the airstrikes but says "they alone will not achieve U.S. objectives in the Middle East."
Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer is calling the airstrikes "appropriate," but says "the administration has to be careful about not getting us into a greater and more involved war in Syria."
And House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi says, "One night of airstrikes is not a substitute for a clear, comprehensive Syria strategy."
Syria
Syrian presidency tweets "Good souls will not be humiliated" after airstrikes by US, UK, France.
Russia
A highly placed Russian politician is likening President Donald Trump to Adolf Hitler after the launch of airstrikes against Syria, and says he regards the action as a move against Russia.
Alexander Sherin, deputy head of the State Duma's defense committee, says Trump "can be called Adolf Hitler No. 2 of our time — because, you see, he even chose the time that Hitler attacked the Soviet Union."
That's according to state news agency RIA-Novosti. The Nazi forces' opening attack against the USSR in 1941 was launched around 4 a.m.
United Kingdom
The British defense ministry says "initial indications" show that the airstrikes against Syria produced a "successful attack" on a Syrian military facility.
The U.K., U.S. and France launched the attacks near Damascus early Saturday. The U.K. ministry says in a statement that while the effectiveness of the strike is still being analyzed, "initial indications are that the precision of the Storm Shadow weapons and meticulous target planning have resulted in a successful attack."
British Prime Minister Theresa May is describing the attack as neither "about intervening in a civil war" nor "about regime change," but a limited and targeted strike that "does not further escalate tensions in the region" and does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties.
May says, "We would have preferred an alternative path. But on this occasion there is none."
France
French President Emmanuel Macron says his nation, the United States and Britain have launched a military operation against the Syrian government's "clandestine chemical arsenal."
Macron says in a statement Saturday that France's "red line has been crossed" after a suspected chemical attack last week in the Syrian town of Douma.
He says there is "no doubt" that the Syrian government is responsible. President Bashar Assad's government denies responsibility.
Macron says the operation is limited to Syria's abilities to produce chemical weapons. He is not giving details about what equipment is involved in the operation or what sites it is targeting.
