US military establish options if Syria uses chemical weapons

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – The US general said on Saturday that he was involved in a "routine dialogue" with the White House on military options if Syria ignored US warnings against the use of chemical weapons in an assault. planned on the enclave of Idlib.

Navy General Joseph Dunford, President of the Chiefs of Staff, said that no decision had been made by the United States to use military force in response to a future chemical attack in Syria.

"But we are in dialogue, a routine dialogue with the president to make sure that he knows where we are with regard to planning in case chemical weapons are used," he told a small group of journalists. Dunford later added, "He expects us to have military options and we have provided him with updates on the development of these military options."

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has massed his army and allied forces on the front lines in the north-west, and Russian planes have joined his rebel bombardment, a prelude to a widely awaited assault despite Turkey's objections.

This week, an American envoy said that there was "a lot of evidence" that Syrian government forces were preparing chemical weapons in Idlib.

The White House warned that the United States and its allies would react "quickly and vigorously" if government forces used chemical weapons in Idlib. President Donald Trump has bombed Syria twice for its alleged use of chemical weapons, in April 2017 and April 2018.

Dunford did not say, one way or the other, what he expected from Trump if Syria used chemical weapons again.

The senior French military official also said last week that his forces were ready to strike at Syrian targets if chemical weapons were used in Idlib.

Dunford declined to comment on US intelligence on possible Syrian preparations for chemical agents.

"I would not comment on the information, what we have, what we do not have," he said.

& # 39; DISAPPOINTING & # 39;

Idlib is the only major insurgent stronghold and a government offensive could be the last decisive battle in a war that killed more than half a million people and forced 11 million people to flee their homes.

The Turkish, Iranian and Russian presidents failed on Friday to agree on a ceasefire that would prevent an offensive.

Asked if the attack on Idlib could still be avoided, Dunford said, "I do not know if anything can stop it."

"It's certainly disappointing but maybe not (surprisingly) that the Russians, the Turks and the Iranians were not able to find a solution yesterday," he said.

Tehran and Moscow have helped Assad turn the tide of war against a range of opponents ranging from Western-backed rebels to Islamist militants, while Turkey is one of the main supporters of the opposition and has troops in the country. country.

Turkey says it fears a massacre and can not accommodate more refugees flooding its border.

But Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that a ceasefire would be useless, as it would not involve militant Islamist groups he considers to be terrorists.

Dunford warned of the potential for a humanitarian catastrophe at Idlib and instead recommended more narrowly focused operations against militants. "There is a more effective way to conduct counterterrorism operations than mainstream conventional operations in Idlib," he said.