LISBON, April 14 (Xinhua) -- Portugal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Saturday, saying it understood the reasons for the airstrikes on Syria, but urged all parties to seek a peaceful solution.
"This morning's attack on the chemical weapons capabilities of Syria was conducted by the United States of America, France and the United Kingdom, three countries that are friends and allies of Portugal," the statement read.
"Portugal understands the reasons for and the timing of this military intervention. The Syrian regime must fully fulfill its responsibilities. Resorting to means and forms of war deemed intolerable by humanity is unacceptable."
"Portugal emphasizes the need to avoid any escalation of the Syrian conflict, which would generate further insecurity, instability and suffering in the region."
"As the European Union and the Secretary General of the United Nations have insisted repeatedly, all parties must show themselves to be open to independent investigations into war crimes, and they must show restraint in the use of force and commitment to seeking a political, negotiated and peaceful solution to the Syrian conflict, which today represents a threat to global peace and security." the statement concluded.
Also on Saturday, Italian Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Italy did not participate in the overnight joint U.S.-led strikes on Syria, and no such strike departed from the Mediterranean country's territory.
The U.S. has four military bases in Italy, including one at Sigonella in Sicily.
While condemning the use of chemical warfare and its "atrocious" consequences for civilian victims, Gentiloni stressed that "the Syrian crisis cannot be resolved through the use of force" but through negotiations, and that is is "not too late" to find a way out of the civil war that has been raging in the Middle Eastern country since early 2011.
