President Donald Trump was evasive Thursday about when the United States might attack Syria in retaliation for an alleged chemical weapons assault, saying it could be "very soon or not so soon at all!"
A day after warning starkly that "missiles will be coming," Trump in another early morning tweet storm wrote: "Never said when an attack on Syria would take place. Could be very soon or not so soon at all!"
He added: "In any event, the United States, under my Administration, has done a great job of ridding the region of ISIS. Where is our 'Thank you America?'"
Trump's new tweet seemed to backtrack from the bellicose one of Wednesday in which he suggested to Syria and its ally Russia that a US attack over the alleged chemical weapons assault on civilians last weekend was all but imminent.
That one, which came after a warning from Russia, went like this: "Russia vows to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria. Get ready Russia, because they will be coming, nice and new and "smart!" You shouldn't be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it!"
The tough talk between Trump and Russia has raised fears of the Syria conflict mushroomning into something even more serious involving America and its Western allies on one side and the Russians on the other.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned world powers Wednesday to keep the confict from "spiraling out of control."
French President Emmanuel Macron said that he would respond to "proof" that the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad had used chemical weapons, "at a time of our choosing".
"We have proof that... chemical weapons were used, at least chlorine, and that they were used by the regime of Bashar al-Assad," Macron said during an interview on France's TF1 television.
Macron said that he would respond "at a time of our choosing, when we judge it to be the most useful and the most effective."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel it was now evident that the Syrian regime failed to eradicate its chemical weapons, after a toxic gas attack blamed on Damascus.
"We... must now acknowledge that it is obvious that the destruction was not completely carried out," she said. Damascus narrowly avoided American and French air strikes in 2013 in retaliation for a suspected sarin attack by agreeing to hand over its chemical arsenal.
