Syrian Official Reminds of West's Claims Iraq Has Weapons of Mass Destruction

Damascus would never allow the West to investigate reported chemical attacks in Idlib, but creation of an international independent commission including Russia, Iran and China is possible, Ali Ahmad, the political adviser to the Syrian minister of information, told Sputnik on Wednesday.

DAMASCUS (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, a source in the US Mission to the United Nations told Sputnik that the United States, France and the United Kingdom have introduced to the UN Security Council (UNSC) a draft resolution on the reported use of chemical weapons in the Syrian city of Idlib.

"The Syrian party will certainly not allow entering Syria without the state’s approval, especially if it is the West alone. If the countries friendly to Syria, including Russia, take part in any investigation processes, we could think about it. Because the West always wants to dictate its conditions to the Syrian party … but if the commissions are moderate and include Russia, Iran, China, several parties … Russia called for a creation of a group that includes both the West and the East in order to find out the truth in many issues. But they [the West] only want their own people," Ahmad said.

The adviser stressed that allowing the western countries to conduct their own investigation would be repeating "the mistakes of the past," and reminded that "when they [the West] accused Iraq of having weapons of mass destruction, there were big commissions, and in the end they destroyed the country."

"Do we need to repeat the mistakes of the others?" Ahmad asked.

Speaking about the western countries accusing Damascus of using chemical weapons in Idlib, Ahmad underlined that many leaders hurried to put the blame on Damascus without waiting for any detailed information, which is a sign of a "political decision" aimed to support illegal military groups fighting against the Syrian forces.

The adviser also reminded that Syria destroyed its entire arsenal of chemical weapons in 2013 under international observation, and stressed that "there are no more chemical weapons left in Syria, and the entire world knows it."

Earlier in the day, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said the Idlib chemical weapons attack allegation reminded Colin Powell's claims in 2003/

The Syrian National Coalition of Revolution and Opposition Forces said Tuesday that nearly 80 people were killed earlier that day in a chemical weapon attack in Idlib, with some 200 injured, saying the Syrian army was responsible for the tragedy. A source in the Syrian army later told Sputnik, however, that the Syria troops did not have chemical weapons and the allegations could be part of anti-Damascus propaganda.

In 2013, the Syrian authorities agreed to transfer its stockpiled chemical weapons under international control for their subsequent destruction in order to prevent them from becoming available to militants operating in the country.