UN Council set for Syria clash as West readies military action

PanARMENIAN.Net - The United Nations Security Council was set for a showdown over Syria on Wednesday, August 28 after Britain sought authorization for Western military action that Russia called premature, Reuters said.

UN chemical weapons experts investigating an apparent gas attack that killed hundreds of civilians in rebel-held suburbs of Damascus made a second trip across the front line to take samples. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon pleaded for them to be given the time they need to complete their mission.

But the United States and European and Middle East allies have already pinned the blame on President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Even if Russia blacks UN approval, U.S.-led air or missile strikes on Syria look all but certain, though the timing is far from clear.

That has set Western leaders on a collision course with Moscow, Assad's main arms supplier, as well as with China, which also has a veto in the Security Council and disapproves of what it sees as a push for Iraq-style "regime change" - despite U.S. denials that President Barack Obama aims to overthrow Assad.

Uncertainty over how the escalation of the conflict at the heart of the oil-exporting Middle East will affect trade and the world economy sent oil prices to their highest levels in six months, while stocks fell. Fears over the economy of Syria's hostile neighbor Turkey pushed its lira to a record low.