Prime Minister Kevin Rudd says there's now overwhelming evidence the Syrian regime was behind a deadly chemical attack on its own people, and has warned it could do it again.
Mr Rudd said Syria had committed what was arguably a crime against humanity.
"Our belief is that the Syrian regime is responsible for these chemical weapons attacks against the Syrian people," he told reporters in Melbourne.
"We are confident of those conclusions. The evidence in our judgments is now overwhelming."
Mr Rudd, who was briefed about Syria by intelligence and foreign affairs officials in Canberra on Thursday morning, said there must be a robust international response.
"In the absence of such a response, the problem is this - the regime could then take succour that it could do this again.
"We do not believe that is the right course of action."
Mr Rudd said if Syria was seen to be able to get away with such an attack, other regimes could believe they could do the same.
He said what the Syrian regime had done was in grave breach of the 1925 Geneva Convention on use of chemical weapons as well as the 1992 Chemical Weapons Convention.
"These are the most flagrant breaches," he said.
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