US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said on Thursday that if military action were taken against Syria, it would be an "international collaboration" rather than a unilateral action on the part of the United States.

"The United States is consulting with all of our allies and the international community regarding Syria," said Hagel, as he wrapped up talks to deepen defense ties with Southeast Asia on Thursday.

On Wednesday, during an interview with PBS, US President Barack Obama said he had "concluded" that an alleged chemical weapons attack against civilians on the outskirts of Damascus on Aug 21 had been perpetrated by the Syrian government.

On Tuesday, Hagel told the BBC that US military forces were "ready" to carry out strikes against Syrian government targets whenever Obama gave the order.

However, since then, various figures in the international community have suggested that UN weapons inspectors in Syria need more time to study the evidence before reaching conclusions on the attack.

The US defense chief has been visiting Brunei for the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus, which took place on Wednesday and Thursday. The event involves 10 defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, as well as Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the United States.

Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan held talks with Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov on the sidelines of the meeting on Thursday, although it is not clear whether they discussed the Syrian issue.

Moscow is sending two warships to the eastern Mediterranean, Interfax news agency said on Thursday, as Western powers prepare for military action in response to last week's alleged chemical weapon attack.

Russian ships arrived

Interfax quoted a source in the Russian armed forces general staff as saying a missile cruiser and an anti-submarine ship would arrive in the coming days because of the "well-known situation" - a clear reference to the conflict in Syria.

The Russian navy later denied that the deployment was linked to events in Syria, saying it was part of a long-planned rotation of its ships in the Mediterranean. It did not say what kind of vessels, or how many, were on their way to the region.

Hagel told the BBC on Tuesday that four naval destroyers had been sent to the eastern Mediterranean, where they would be able to carry out strikes on Syrian targets.

However, Moscow said it opposes any military intervention in Syria and that it has no plans to be drawn into any conflict. It says there is no proof that Syrian government forces carried out the attack.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennadi Gatilov said on Thursday that calls for military intervention in Syria openly challenged the United Nations Charter.

"The plans being declared by some countries to conduct a military attack against Syria constitute an undisguised challenge to key provisions of the UN Charter and to other international laws," Gatilov said.

Gatilov said it is now necessary to use political and diplomatic tools to the utmost. UN experts investigating the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria should be allowed to complete their work and report findings to the UN Security Council, he said.

China Daily-Reuters-Xinhua-AP

(China Daily 08/30/2013 page11)