Russian President Vladimir Putin has responded to the air strikes

Russian President Vladimir Putin has responded to the air strikes on civil and military facilities in Syria by stating it was a “violation of international law.”

Putin said in a statement that Washington launched “an aggression against a sovereign state which is at the forefront of the fight against terrorism,” the statement from the president said. Putin stressed that the multi-national strikes were not sanctioned by the UN Security Council, and were carried out “in violation of the UN Charter and principles of international law.”

Yesterday, the  Russian Defense Ministry has claimed it has “proof” that the alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria was “staged” according to reports. The MOD has also accused the British government of pressuring the perpetrators in order to speed up up the “provocation.”

The country also alleges that the recent chemical attack in Syria last Sunday was staged by the “white helmets,” a US-funded NGO praised by the mainstream media for their ‘humanitarian’ work.

RT reports: What’s more, the current escalation of the Syrian crisis has “a devastating impact on the whole system of international relations.” Yet, history will set things straight as “it has already found Washington responsible for massacres in Yugoslavia.

In fact, by using force, Washington is only promoting a new wave of asylum-seekers from Syria and the whole region, according to the Russian leader.

Meanwhile, Russia is calling an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the aggressive actions of the US and its allies, the statement concluded.

Washington and its allies unleashed the bombardment in the early hours of Saturday in retaliation for the alleged chemical attack by the Assad government in the town of Douma, 10 kilometers from Damascus, last week.

The strikes were conducted before a team of investigators from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) was due to reach Douma to determine whether the attack had indeed taken place.

Syrian air defense systems have intercepted the majority of cruise missiles and air-surface missiles from the allies, the Russian Defense Ministry said earlier, adding that none of its own air defense units were involved in repelling the attack. According to the latest data from the Russian MoD, Syria intercepted at least 71 cruise missiles out of the 103 launched by the allies on Saturday.

Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei harshly criticized the airstrikes on Syrian soil, branding the leaders of the UK, US, and France “criminals.” He added that the attack will not result in any “benefits,” recalling the US-led operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.