Why Russia vetoed a UNSC resolution on renewing Syrian chemical weapons probe

"The previous investigation report, released by the OPCW in June, stated that traces of sarin had been found in soil samples. ... The JIM mission never actually visited the site of the alleged attack, Russia pointed out, saying that the experts relied on evidence collected by the militant groups controlling the area. ... At the time of the April attack, the area of Khan Sheikhoun was under the control of Tahrir al-Sham, better known as the Al-Nusra Front [al Qaeda cutout] terrorist group. Last week, the US State Department admitted that militants linked to Al-Nusra Front are carrying out terrorist attacks using chemical weapons in Syria.

-- From RT's October 24 report, Russia vetoes UNSC resolution on renewing Syria chemical weapons probe

As to why the State Department should suddenly utter a truth about Syria --  one theory is that by admitting Nusra carries out chemical weapons attacks, the U.S. administration could claim ahead of the latest OPCW-UN report publication (see below) that it never denied Nusra used such weapons. 

My theory is that it's useless to attempt to plumb the motive of people who have consistently displayed the characteristics  of a sidewinder snake when it comes to Syria.

'Flawed Methodology' used by OPCW-UN Report on Chemical Attacks in Syria - Moscow

11:08 - 27.10.2017 (updated 11:54)

Sputnik

The recently issued report put the blame for a chemical weapons incident in Syria's Khan Sheikhun on President Bashar Assad. Russia's deputy foreign minister has stated that Moscow may propose measures to improve methods of probing chemical attacks after examining the results of the findings.

Moscow, after its first reading of the OPCW-UN Syria report, believes that there are flaws in the methodology and that biased evidence was used, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told RIA Novosti.

According to Ryabkov, conclusions were derived from "all the same evidence and testimony, which cause us great doubts due to the bias of sources and due to non-compliance with the requirements of the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, according to the sequence of collection and storage of material evidence."

"All these logical inconsistencies, internal contradictions are visible even after the first cursory reading," the deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry added.

The OPCW-UN Joint Investigative Mechanism on the use of chemical weapons in Syria on Thursday presented a report to the UN Security Council on the incidents involving the nerve gas sarin in Khan Sheikhoun on April 4, 2017 and mustard gas in Umm Hosh on September 15-16, 2016.

The US fired several dozen cruise missiles at the Syrian airbase in response to an alleged government chemical attack in the province of Idlib.

READ MORE: Russia: US Has Not Provided Proof of Assad's Guilt in Syrian Chemical Attacks

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