Tillerson: Russia is 'complicit' or 'incompetent' over handling Syria chemical weapons deal

Russia has failed to hold up its end of a 2013 deal to remove Syria's chemical weapons stockpile, making Moscow either "complicit" or "simply incompetent" in its handling of the agreement, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Thursday night.

Tillerson made his remarks after the U.S. launched a strike from the Mediterranean targeting an airfield near Homs, Syria. The U.S. says Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime was behind Tuesday's chemical attack in Idlib that killed dozens of people, a claim the regime rejects. Tillerson told reporters there is a "high degree of confidence" sarin gas was used in the assault, and he called the U.S. strike a "proportionate" response. He also contradicted the Pentagon, which said Russia had been notified in advance of the strike via a deconfliction line; Tillerson said "there were no discussions or prior contacts" between the U.S. and Moscow.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up