Russia: Attack on Syria Could Lead to Nuclear Disaster

A day after Russian President Vladimir Putin asserted that American intervention in Syria without United Nations approval would be an act of aggression, the Russian Foreign Ministry warned of a potential nuclear disaster in Syria if the United States engaged in military strikes. 

“If a warhead, by design or by chance, were to hit the Miniature Neutron Source Reactor (MSNR) near Damascus, the consequences could be catastrophic,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich stated, according to Russia Today.

Lukashevich also “said if a military strike were launched without seeking approval from the United Nations Security Council that new suffering for other countries of the Middle East and North Africa would occur,” because those nations would be at risk of “contamination by highly enriched uranium and it would no longer be possible to account for nuclear material, its safety and control.”

He “urged the United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)” to carry out “risk evaluation” reports on the ramifications of potential U.S. airstrikes. On Wednesday, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee panel voted to give President Barack Obama authorization to use military force in Syria. A full vote in Congress is expected next week.