Trump cancels Latin America trip to concentrate on Syrian chemical attack response

It is the first time a US president will not attend the Summit of the Americas

Donald Trump with Mike Pence ahead of a meeting with US military officials (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

President Donald Trump has pulled out of a planned trip to the South America later this week, instead staying in Washington to concentrate on the response to the suspected chemical attack in Syria.

The White House announced that Vice President Mike Pence will attend the Summit of the America in Lima, Peru, and also take on a proposed trip to Bogota in Colombia.

"The president will remain in the United States to oversee the American response to Syria and to monitor developments around the world," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said.

The decision will mean that for the first time a sitting US president will not the summit on 13 and 14 April.

On Monday evening, Mr Trump has promised a “forceful” response to the alleged chemical attack in Syria in Douma, near the capital Damascus. Medical sources say dozens were killed in the suspected attack but exact numbers are impossible to verify.

“We have a lot of options militarily,” he said, adding that a response would be decided “shortly”. International condemnation has been growing in recent days, with a number of nations accusing the government of President Bashar al-Assad of carrying out the attack.

Damascus has denied being involved in the attack, with the Syrian government - who are suspected by much of the international community of carrying out multiple attacks using chemical weapons in recent years - falling back on blaming rebel factions involved in the country's civil war.

Mr Trump said the US was getting some “good clarity” on who was responsible for the incident in Douma, despite Syria's closest ally, Russia, also claiming the allegations of a chemical attack are "false"

President Trump has promised a response within 48 hours, and has said that Russia or any other nation found to share responsibility for apparent chemical weapons attack on civilians will “pay a price.”

The Hague-based Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) has opened an investigation to try and establish what exactly took place in Douma, with Russia and Syria stating that they are keen to allow the OPCW access to the attack site.

“Syria is keen on cooperating with the OPCW to uncover the truth behind the allegations that some Western sides have been advertising to justify their aggressive intentions,” state news agency Sana said, quoting an official Foreign Ministry source.

In Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin would submit a resolution to the UN Security Council proposing that the OPCW investigate the alleged attack, with the US also asking for a vote on Tuesday over their draft resolution concerning an investigation.

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said there was no threat of the situation in Syria resulting in a military clash between Russia and the United States.

The Tass news agency quoted Mr Bogdanov as saying Russia and US officials had “working contacts” over Syria and he believed common sense would prevail.

As for the Summit of the Americas, it is Mr Pence who will have to face a number of the countries Mr Trump has derided repeatedly over immigration and drug policies. The president is “profoundly unpopular”, making it difficult for other leaders to work with him, said Mark Feierstein, who worked on hemispheric issues for President Barack Obama’s White House. However, as one diplomat said, “no leaders are losing sleep over” Mr Trump, adding: “We all know how to smile and nod along, so we’re not too worried.”

Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report