The Countries That Support Syria

On Thursday night, the United States launched Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian airfield in retaliation against the Assad regime for bombing the Syrian people with a chemical nerve agent that at least killed 72 people and injured hundreds more. The decision by the United States to react with military force was championed by some countries, but others are condemning the actions against the Syrian government — which countries support Syria after Trump's missile strike?

Trump had support from a number of nations to take action against the regime. For one, Britain has shown the greatest public support. The U.S. ally was alerted to the planned attack and asked not to get involved. Since, the government has been vocal about supporting the decision — a spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May said on Friday, "The UK government fully supports the U.S. action, which we believe was an appropriate response to the barbaric chemical weapons attack launched by the Syrian regime, and is intended to deter further attacks."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, together pointed a finger at the Middle Eastern dictatorship for the U.S. missile strike saying, “President Assad alone bears responsibility for this development ... his repeated use of chemical weapons and his crimes against his own population had to be sanctioned.”

Israel, a polarizing nation when it comes to U.S. politics, also came to Trump's defense. Said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the attack:

President Trump sent a strong and clear message today that the use and spread of chemical weapons will not be tolerated. Israel fully supports President Trump’s decision and hopes that this message of resolve in the face of the Assad regime’s horrific actions will resonate not only in Damascus, but in Tehran, Pyongyang and elsewhere.

Other leaders released statements of support including those from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Italy, Poland, United Arab Emirates, Japan, and Canada.

Although far more nations are in support of the Trump administration's air strikes, there are still nations that back Syria and the Assad Regime: Russia and Iran.

In an emergency U.N. security council meeting over the recent attacks in Syria Friday afternoon, Russian Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations Vladimir Safronkov said of the U.S. air strike in Syria on Thursday night, "We describe that attack as a fragrant violation of international law and an act of aggression. We strongly condemn the illegitimate actions by the U.S." He also warned that "the consequences of this for regional and international stability could be extremely serious."

It's an echo of the reaction from Russian president, Vladimir Putin, who called the U.S. strike "an act of aggression against a sovereign state delivered in violation of international law under a far-fetched pretext,” promising that it will cause "considerable damage to the relationship between the United States and Russia."