WW3 FEARS: Russia THREATENS Donald Trump with 'negative consequences' if he strikes Syria – Express

Fuente: Getty Images

In response to a question on whether President Donald Trump may launch attacks in Syria, Russia’s deputy UN envoy Vladimir Safronkov said: “Think about negative consequences”.

He added: "We have to think about negative consequences, negative consequences, and all the responsibility if military action occurred will be on shoulders of those who initiated such doubtful and tragic enterprise."

When asked what those negative consequences could be, he said: "Look at Iraq, look at Libya."

The warning follows President Trump’s passionate speech at the White House following the Syria gas attack on Tuesday.

The US has since launched more than 50 Tomahawk missiles on a Syrian airfield from which the suspected chemical attack was launched.

The strike was launched at 8:45 p.m. ET, targeting the airfield's hangers, aircraft, runways, and fuel storage areas – just after Trump had met with the Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The US strike caused “losses”, according to a Syrian military source, but numbers are yet to be confirmed.

The US military believes the strike has “severely damaged or destroyed Syrian aircraft and support infrastructure”.

According to reports, as many as 14 fighter jets have been destroyed in Trump’s airstrike against Assad’s regime.

Responding to the attack, President Trump held an impromptu press conference and said: “Tonight I ordered a targeted military strike on the military airfield in Syria from where the chemical attack was launched.

“It is in vital national security interests of the United States to prevent the spread and use of chemical weapons.”

The Pentagon has confirmed it used a hotline for minimising the risk of aerial combat between US and Russian jets in eastern Syria to alert Russia of the strike against its Syrian client.

The Russians are sure to have routed that warning to Assad, raising immediate questions about what the strike will have accomplished, and also signalling that the US does not seek escalation.

Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis said: “Russian forces were notified in advance of the strike using the established deconfliction line. US military planners took precautions to minimise risk to Russian or Syrian personnel located at the airfield."

However, US Secretary Rex Tillerson said: "There were no discussions or prior contacts, nor had there been any since the attack with Moscow."

Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham, both armed services committee hawks who have been sharply critical of Trump have praised President Trump for the attacks.

In a joint statement, they said: "We salute the skill and professionalism of the US armed forces who carried out tonight’s strikes in Syria. Acting on the orders of their commander-in-chief, they have sent an important message: the United States will no longer stand idly by as Assad, aided and abetted by Putin’s Russia, slaughters innocent Syrians with chemical weapons and barrel bombs."

Moments before Trump launched air-strikes in Syria, the US military confirmed they are studying military options in Syria and President Trump said “something should happen”.

As he travelled to Florida to meet the Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Mr Trump suggested he may be taking a stronger stance against Assad, an ally of Iran and Russia.

Mr Trump told reporters on his Air Force One: “I think what Assad did is terrible.”

The poison gas attack on Tuesday in the rebel-held northern Syrian town of Khan Sheikhoun killed at least 80 people, many of them children.

Washington has blamed the attack on the Syrian government, putting it at odds with Russia, which has air and ground forces in Syria. The Syrian government has denied it was behind the attack.

Russia is Syria's most powerful ally and has provided the military might behind Assad's grip on the country, which plunged into civil war six years ago.