US President Donald Trump has responded after Russia warned the US against military strikes in Syria, saying missiles “will be coming.”
Trump labelled Syria’s President Assad a ‘Gas Killing Animal’ in an extraordinary message, sent via Twitter.
He tweeted: “Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria.
“Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and “smart!”
“You shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!”
.@POTUS Trump condemns the heinous attack on innocent Syrians with banned chemical weapons. #Syria pic.twitter.com/qiEahlL3Ah
— Department of State (@StateDept) April 9, 2018
In response to the tweet, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said: “Smart missiles should fly towards terrorists, not [Syria’s] lawful government, which has spent several years fighting against international terrorism on its territory.”
Trump administration officials have consulted with global allies on a possible joint military response to Syria’s alleged poison gas attack.
Syrian opposition activists, rescue workers and medics say more than 40 people died in the attack in Douma on Saturday, where bombs believed to contain toxic chemicals were dropped.
Alexander Zasypkin, the Russian envoy to Beirut, earlier warned: “If there is an American strike, then we… will shoot down the missiles and target the positions from where they were launched.
“In the past few days, we have seen an escalation towards a significant crisis.”
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