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Paris (CNN) -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday that Saudi Arabia will support military intervention in Syria
by the United States and its partners. "They have supported the strike
and they support taking action," Kerry said after a long ...
Kerry: Saudi Arabia OK with international military strike on Syria
updated 7:06 PM EDT, Sun September 8, 2013
A man mourns over the bodies of
those killed in a suspected chemical weapon attack in a suburb of
Damascus, Syria, on Wednesday, August 21. Syrian rebels said that
poisonous gas rained down from rockets overnight, but authorities have
denied the allegations that they used chemical weapons and accused the
opposition of staging the attacks. U.S. officials, however, said there
were "strong indications" that there was a chemical weapons attack by
the government.
HIDE CAPTION
Suspected chemical attack in Syria
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- NEW: President Obama to talk Syria on Capitol Hill on Tuesday
- Qatar says it is examining options on how to deal with Syria
- Syrian president tells U.S. journalist that Syria is prepared to retaliate if U.S. attacks
- Syria crossed 'international, global red line,' he says
"They have supported the
strike and they support taking action," Kerry said after a long meeting
of Arab League ministers originally called to discuss the Mideast peace
initiative. "They believe that it's very important to do that."
Kerry told reporters he
had a very good side meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal,
and Saudi Arabia was one of the countries to sign on to a statement
condemning the reported use of chemical weapons last month by the Syrian
military against rebels.
Saudi Arabia is a
diplomatic heavyweight in the Arab world but hasn't publicly called for
an international military reprisal after the incident.
With its vast air force and bases, Saudi Arabia could offer a lot of resources to Western militaries.
But it's not expected to
participate directly in any attack on Syria, because that would be
likely to inflame a widespread Arabian Peninsula antipathy against
Western military forces intruding into Arab affairs.
Kerry also said the Arab League ministers unanimously condemned the August 21 incident.
Syria chemical attack analysis
Christians under attack in Syria
"As we discussed today,
all of us agreed -- not one dissenter -- that (Syrian President Bashar)
al-Assad's deplorable use of chemical weapons -- which we know killed
hundreds of innocent people, including at least 426 children on this
occasion, this one occasion -- this crosses an international, global red
line," he said.
He said the foreign
ministers discussed the "possible and necessary measures" needed to
deter al-Assad from using chemical weapons again. Kerry said a "number
of countries immediately signed on" to an agreement reached by 12
countries on the side at the recent G20 summit.
And while he named Saudi
Arabia as one of those nations, he said the others that had agreed to
help would make their announcements in the next day.
The statement called for
a "strong international response" and "supports efforts undertaken by
the United States and other countries to reinforce the prohibition on
the use of chemical weapons." It did not expressly endorse military
action, although U.S. officials said the nations who signed it
interpreted the statement as tacit support for strikes.
The Syrian government
has denied being behind chemical weapons attacks, which it blames on
rebels. Al-Assad on Sunday denied again he had anything to do with the
use of chemical agents, U.S. journalist Charlie Rose reported. The PBS
anchor and CBS "This Morning" co-host said al-Assad told him during an
interview to be broadcast Monday that Syria was prepared to retaliate if
there was a military strike by the United States and its partners.
"It doesn't surprise us
that someone who would kill thousands of his own people, including
hundreds of children, with poison gas would also lie about it," a
spokeswoman for the National Security Council, Bernadette Meehan, said.
Al-Assad's rare
interview with U.S. media comes as U.S. President Barack Obama lobbies
Congress and the country to support military action.
Congress officially
returns to Washington Monday after a monthlong summer recess to debate
and vote on a resolution giving Obama the authorization to take military
action.
The president will go to Capitol Hill on Tuesday and make his case to Senate Democrats, a Senate leadership aide said Sunday.
Obama will also address the nation on Syria Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET from the White House.
Videos that purport to
show the results of a chemical weapons attack are part of a White House
campaign to inform Congress about the nature of the incident, Kerry
said.
"The reason for this is
to make sure everybody understands what is at stake," he said. "Those
videos make it clear to people that these are real human beings, real
children, parents being affected in ways that are unacceptable to
anybody, anywhere, by any standard."
He said a vast majority of the members are undecided as to how they will vote on authorizing force against Syria.
Qatari Foreign Minister Khalid bin Mohamed al-Attiyah appeared at the news conference with Kerry.
"Qatar is currently
studying with its friends and the United Nations what it could provide
in order to protect the Syrian people," he said, according to a
translator.
Kerry met later with UK
Foreign Secretary William Hague in London on Sunday. Britain's
Parliament has ruled out getting militarily involved in Syria, but Prime
Minister David Cameron has pledged to continue to push for a tough
response against the al-Assad regime.
Kerry's efforts with
European allies paralleled those of his boss, Obama, who tried to rally
members of the G20 in St. Petersburg, Russia, last week.
Obama met with his
Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin, on the sidelines of the
St. Petersburg summit Friday. But despite both saying the talks were
constructive, there was no sign of consensus.
CNN's Elise Labott reported from Paris.
CNN's Steve Almasy reported and wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Nic Robertson,
Nick Paton Walsh and Kevin Liptak contributed to this story.
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