China supports US-Russia deal on Syria

In a statement carried by the state-run SANA News Agency, the ministry said that the US and its allies cannot force their will on the Syrian people.

Effect of Sarin

"In a new confirmation about the size of their involvement in the Syrian crisis and their feverish resolve to impose their will and agendas on the Syrian people, the foreign ministers of the US, France and Britain have tried to promote their contradictory stances through trying to reconcile their support for terrorism with their allegations about supporting the political process in Syria," the ministry said.

The ministry also accused Western powers of trying to wreck prospects for a negotiated settlement to the country's conflict by imposing preconditions on the peace process and supporting rebel fighters.

The comments, highlighting the precariousness of any international mediation between Syria's two warring parties, followed a meeting of foreign ministers from the US, France and Britain a day earlier, at which they agreed to seek a "tough" UN resolution against Syria over its use and stockpile of chemical weapons.

Last week, Russia proposed an initiative to strip Syria of its chemical weapons, in the hope of stripping Washington of its pretext to unleash a military strike against Syria over allegations that the government troops gassed civilians in the countryside of Damascus on Aug 21.

The administration of Assad denied the accusations, blaming the attacks on rebel fighters, particularly groups allied to al-Qaida. The Syrian government said rebels staged false-flag attacks using sarin gas supplied by neighboring countries allied to the US, particularly Saudi Arabia.

Syrian state television showed video footage of what they said were stockpiles of chemical weapons used by rebel groups to stage such attacks, as well as video of what appeared to be rebels firing gas cylinders attached to rockets.

The last-minute proposition by Russia was hailed by Damascus, which said it would surrender its chemical stock not because of fears of a possible US strike, but of its confidence in "Russia's wisdom".