Kremlin has no information about pending chemical attacks in Syria

MOSCOW, June 27. /TASS/. Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin had no information on pending chemical attacks in Syria.

"I have no information whatsoever about the chemical threat. I have no accurate information, and I think that my counterparts from intelligence services and the Defense Ministry will share their anxiety if such information emerges," Peskov said, commenting on the White House statement about potential evidences of the preparation of chemical attacks by the Syrian Arab Republic’s government that the US administration is allegedly privy to.

He added that chemical attacks had been conducted by terrorists of the Islamic State (IS, a terror organization outlawed in Russia) and other criminal groups numerous times, so there was potential danger that such situations might occur again.

As for the White House statement itself, Peskov noted that the Kremlin had heard of it.

"We don’t know what it is based on," he added. "We are, of course, not in the agreement with the phrase ‘regular attack,’ because, as you know, despite the demands of the Russian side, there was no impartial international investigation into the previous tragedy that involved chemical agents; thus we do not consider it possible to lay the responsibility on the Syrian armed forces."

The Russian leader’s spokesman reiterated that the Kremlin had been pursuing and supporting the idea that "it is impossible, illegitimate and absolutely wrong with regard to the achievement of the final goal on the Syrian settlement" to blame Bashar al-Assad for it without an investigation.

"Of course, we also consider any similar threats to the lawful administration of the Syrian Arab Republic as unacceptable," Peskov said, highlighting that Russia also considered "the use of chemical agents as absolutely inadmissible and unacceptable."