By HAYLEY PETERSON
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that it would be 'utter nonsense' for the Syrian government to use chemical weapons and urged the U.S. to hold off on any punitive military action against Syrian President Bashar Assad.
'While the Syrian army is on the offensive, saying that it is the Syrian government that used chemical weapons is utter nonsense,' he said. 'I would like to address Obama as a Nobel Peace Prize laureate: before using force in Syria, it would be good to think about future casualties.'
He challenged the U.S. to provide any evidence tying Assad's forces to the attack and suggested that top leaders discuss the issue next week at the G20 summit.
Russia's President Vladimir Putin talks to journalists in the far eastern city of Vladivostok, August 31, 2013
Putin said on Saturday that it would be 'utter nonsense' for the Syrian government to use chemical weapons when it was winning the war
'If they say that the [Syrian] governmental forces used weapons of mass destruction… and that they have proof of it, let them present it to the UN inspectors and the [UN] Security Council,' Putin said. 'Claims that the proof exists, but is classified and cannot be presented to anybody are below criticism. This is plain disrespect for their partners.'
The Obama administration released a four-page intelligence report Friday that said at least 1,429 people, including more than 400 children, were killed by a chemical weapons attack on August 21.
'I am convinced that [the chemical attack] is nothing more than a provocation by those who want to drag other countries into the Syrian conflict, and who want to win the support of powerful members of the international arena, especially the United States,' Putin said.
Putin's remarks come after the Obama administration made its most forceful case Friday for a punitive strike against Assad.
'History would judge us all extraordinarily harshly if we turned a blind eye to a dictator’s use of chemical weapons,' Secretary of State John Kerry said, calling Assad a 'thug' and a 'murderer.'
Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks on Syria at the State Department in Washington on Friday
Shortly after Kerry's remarks, President Obama said he is considering a 'limited, narrow act' against Syria
'Some cite the risk of doing things,' he said. But we need to ask, “What is the risk of doing nothing?”' he added.
The Obama administration's intelligence report concludes with 'high confidence,' short of actual confirmation, that the Syrian government carried out the chemical weapons attack. Some of the intelligence gathered on the attack is classified and will only be shared with members of Congress, Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday.
'We intercepted communications involving a senior official intimately familiar with the offensive who confirmed that chemical weapons were used by the regime on August 21 and was concerned with the U.N. inspectors obtaining evidence,' the report says. 'On the afternoon of August 21, we have intelligence that Syrian chemical weapons personnel were directed to cease operations.'
The Syrian government has dismissed the administration's claims as 'flagrant lies.'
Military intervention: A US Air Force plane lands at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey yesterday. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said the inspection team in Syria is expected to complete its work by today
The White House released this map detailing its understanding of the areas where chemical weapons were used
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