Biden says congressional strikes in Syria are compatible with US right to self-defense

President Joe Biden told Congress on Saturday that the airstrikes he ordered in Syria this week were consistent with the US right to self-defense, as members of his own party called for more transparency on the reasons for which military action was taken without Congressional authorization.

“The United States has taken this step in accordance with the inherent right of self-defense of the United States, as set out in Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations,” Biden wrote in a letter to the President of the United Nations. House, Nancy Pelosi, and Acting Senate Speaker, Patrick Leahy. .

Biden on Thursday ordered airstrikes against facilities in eastern Syria that the Pentagon says are being used by Iran-backed militias. The Defense Department said several facilities were destroyed at a border checkpoint and there were casualties, but provided no further information.

The strikes came in response to a February 15 attack in which rockets hit Erbil International Airport, which houses a coalition military base, in northern Iraq. The attack killed a civilian contractor from the US-led military coalition and injured several others, including a US serviceman.

“I have led this military action to protect and defend our personnel and partners from these attacks and such future attacks,” Biden wrote in his letter on Saturday.

The letter comes as some Senate Democrats pushed back on Biden over the strikes, calling on him to provide a briefing on why military action was taken without Congressional approval. Under the Powers of War resolution, presidents are required to notify Congress within 48 hours of taking military action. In the letter, Biden cited his constitutional authority as commander-in-chief.

“I have directed this military action in accordance with my responsibility to protect the citizens of the United States both at home and abroad and in the service of the interests of the national security and foreign policy of the United States, in accordance with to my constitutional authority to conduct the foreign relations of the United States and as Commander-in-Chief and Director-General, ”Biden wrote.

The Pentagon briefed congressional leaders ahead of the military strikes, according to a spokesperson for the National Security Council. The staff of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi were also briefed ahead of the strike, according to a Democratic aide.

Iran condemned the US airstrikes on Saturday and denied responsibility for rocket attacks on US targets. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the US strikes were “illegal and a violation of Syrian sovereignty,” according to Iranian state media reports.

– CNBC’s Christian Nunley and Reuters contributed to this report.