Pompeo warns Russia, Syria on chemical weapons as Trump prepares for the UN

WASHINGTON DC (Kurdistan 24) – In advance of high-level meetings at the UN General Assembly later this week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo affirmed the Trump administration’s strong opposition to the use of chemical weapons.

“The President is deadly serious to make sure that chemical weapons don’t become the norm in the way nations act around the world,” Pompeo told Chuck Todd, host of NBC’s Sunday talk show, “Meet the Press.”

Todd suggested there was a “Russian angle” to most of America’s international problems: Iran, Syria, and North Korea, and Pompeo responded, “It’s a pretty fair assessment,” although “there are places where we have shared interest.” 

Referring to his tenure as Director of the CIA, before he became Secretary of State, Pompeo added, “I worked with [the Russians] closely on counterterrorism issues.”

But “they have not proven helpful in the Ukraine, in Syria,” he continued. 

“The President is trying to develop a relationship and change that, but we’ve not been successful, at least to date,” Pompeo explained. 

Trump’s view that he can establish a good personal relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin and that fundamentally change relations between the two countries might seem odd, particularly at this point. 

Putin became president in 2000, and both George W. Bush, as well as Barack Obama, made a special effort to establish good ties with him—only to see their efforts end in unambiguous failure. 

As the New York Times suggested, however, Trump seems convinced “he can outmaneuver any leader or strike any deal.” 

Pompeo, like most of Trump’s advisers, does not seem to share that view. Asked if the US would hold Russia responsible if Syria again used chemical weapons, Pompeo replied that the US “would have to analyze” the event, once it occurs, adding, “we pray that it doesn’t.” 

Underscoring the administration’s focus on deterring the use of chemical weapons, Pompeo noted that it had imposed sanctions on Russia for using novichok, a sophisticated nerve agent, earlier this year in an attempt to assassinate a former Russian spy, Sergei Skripal, in Great Britain. 

Pompeo affirmed, “We will hold accountable those that are responsible for violating this fundamental principle:” namely, “chemical weapons are fundamentally different than other types of weapons systems.”

The Kurds know that all too well. Saddam Hussein’s regime used chemical weapons against them, most notoriously, when Iraqi forces attacked the city of Halabja with a mix of mustard gas and nerve agents in March 1988, killing some 5,000 people.

Iran remains a major concern of the Trump administration. Asked if the Russians had been “helpful at all on Iran,” Pompeo replied, “They’ve not been to date.”

Trump will chair a meeting of the 15-member Security Council on Wednesday on preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. It will be attended by the heads of state of the Council members, with the exception of Russia and China, which are sending their Foreign Ministers to New York.

Originally, the topic of the session was to be Iran, but America’s European allies, who are still party to the Iran nuclear deal, complained, fearing that Trump would use the session to pick a fight with them.

The White House also realized that if Iran were the topic of the session, Iranian President Hassan al-Rouhani, who is attending the UN events, would have a right of rebuttal.

Nonetheless, Trump tweeted on Friday, “I will Chair the United Nations Security Council meeting on Iran next week!”

Editing by Nadia Riva