China urges Russia,U.S. to strengthen cooperation on Syria

By Azernews

By Kamila Aliyeva

China has urged all parties, particularly the United States and Russia, to increase communication and coordination to avoid clashes in dealing with the Syrian crisis, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said

"A political solution is the only to deal with the Syria issue," Wang said on April 13, Xinuanet reported.

The statement came after Russia vetoed a UN resolution drafted by the United Kingdom, France and the United States demanding a speedy investigation into an alleged chemical weapons attack in the Syrian province of Idlib on April 4.

Russia's UN Ambassador Vladimir Safronkov said that the draft pre-judged the Syrian government as responsible for the attack.

Western powers, including the United States, blame the Syrian government for the attack. The United States fired 59 cruise missiles at the Shairat military base in central Syria in response.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said that the Syrian government troops have never used or intend to use chemical weapons against civilians and against terrorists.

Wang  went on to say that China calls on the international community to maintain solidarity and continue to support the UN as the main channel of mediation.

The minister confirmed that Chinese government's special envoy to Syria, Xie Xiaoyan, will visit countries involved for an in-depth exchange of views.

Wang reaffirmed China's condemnation and opposition to use of chemical weapons. "China supports an independent and comprehensive investigation into reported chemical weapon use in Syria."

Action taken should be within the UN framework and in accordance with the UN Charter and basic norms of international relations, Wang said.

The UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) have already taken up the investigation of the incident, but so far they have not published any conclusions about possible perpetrators of the incident.

The stocks of chemical weapons were successfully exported from Syria.  In January 2016, the O.P.C.W. announced that the last of the Syrian stocks had been destroyed.