U.S. Allies Stress Support On Day After Air Strikes

“I will tell you … my attitude toward Syria and Assad has changed very much,” Trump said during a news conference at the White House Wednesday.

“When you kill innocent children — innocent babies — little babies with a chemical gas that is so lethal, people were shocked to hear what gas it was, that crosses many, many lines. Beyond a red line, many, many lines,” the president said.

President Barack Obama launched airstrikes against sites in Syria in September 2014 as part of a coalition campaign against the Islamic State group, but those strikes only targeted the terrorist group and not Syrian government forces.

UN Secretary General Syria António Guterres   issued a statement Friday saying he is following the situation in Syria closely and "with grave concern."

"I was abhorred by the chemical weapons attack in Khan Shaykhun, Syria, and the death and injury of many innocent civilians. I have long stated that there needs to be accountability for such crimes, in line with existing international norms and Security Council resolutions," Guterres said. "Mindful of the risk of escalation, I appeal for restraint to avoid any acts that could deepen the suffering of the Syrian people. "

Gutteres also called for all parties involved to review their commitment to making progress in the Geneva Talks.

"A political solution also remains essential for progress in the fight against terrorism.  The Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace and security. I call on the Council to unite and exercise that responsibility.  For too long, international law has been ignored in the Syrian conflict, and it is our shared duty to uphold international standards of humanity.  This is a prerequisite to ending the unrelenting suffering of the people of Syria," he said.

Russia condemned the U.S. missile strike and considered it an attack on its ally according to Russian officials. The Kremlin also suspended its 2015 pact with U.S. which minimized the risk of in-flight incidents among coalition and Russian aircraft operating in Syrian airspace.

A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s said that risk of confrontation between the U.S. and Russia has “significantly increased” since the launch.

Predictably, Assad also condemned the missile strike, calling it “unjust and arrogant aggression” that would only renew his government’s vigor in crushing militant offshoots in Syria.

Trump met with his national security team shortly before sitting down to dinner with Chinese President Xi at Mar-a-Lago in Florida.

According to White House pool reports, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Defense Secretary James Mattis, and national security advisor Gen. H.R. McMaster are all with Trump in Florida.

During a press briefing late Thursday night, Tillerson called Trump's launch a "very decisive action."

McMaster also weighed in saying that the airfield was selected because the administration was able to trace "the murderous act back to that facility."

"What [the strike] does communicate is a big shift, a big shift in Assad's calculus. It should be anyway because this is the first time that the United States has taken direct military action against that regime or the regime of his father," McMaster said.

The general added that in the context of all previous chemical attacks which have occurred -- he estimated  Assad's regime is responsible for 50 such incidents since 2013 -- Thursday night's launch was the right move to upend the Syrian leader's military capability.

Tillerson also told reporters that as Trump evaluated his first attack, he was measured and unemotional.

"I do not view it as emotional reaction at all. As President Trump evaluated this first attack, these attacks occurred on his watch and reflected upon the prior responses or lack of responses he came to the conclusion that we could not yet again turn away and turn a blind eye to what's happened," the secretary of state said.

Tillerson emphasized that administration's primary concerns for now is responding to the use of such chemical weapons. The less response, he argued, the more they are normalized.

"And when we begin to normalize their use we are opening up wider spread use by others who would use such weapons. I don't think we should in any way diminish the risk of the situation in Syria where there is a lot of chaos on the ground," he said. "There are elements on the ground in Syria, elements that are plotting to reach our shore and these type of weapons falling into their hands and being brought to our shore is a direct threat to the American people."

Regarding the future of U.S. diplomatic relations with Russia, Turkey and the Kurds who are spread out in the region, Tillerson said that he expects "all of those parties, with the exception of Bashar al-Assad and perhaps Russia, I think, are going to applaud this particular action."

The end game is defeat ISIS, according to the secretary.

"By defeating ISIS we remove one of the disruptive elements in Syria that exists today. That begins to clarify for us opposition forces and regime forces and working with the coalition, as you know there is a large coalition of international players and allies who are involved in the future resolution in Syria," Tillerson said.

Cease fire agreements between the Syrian regime forces and their opposition would stabilize southern Syria and areas around Raqqa, he said, before adding that help may be on the way for locals.

Local leaders, including those who have left as refugees, are already returning to Syria to govern and help in liberation efforts, Tillerson explained. Those who return would help in the development of local security forces, law enforcement and police forces.

"In the midst of that, through the Geneva process, we will start a political process to resolve Syria's future in terms of its governance structure and that ultimately in our view will lead to a resolution of Basher al-Assad's departure," he said.

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