(VOVworld) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has warned that Western military action against the Arab country would ignite a “regional war”.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad (Photo: SFP)

In an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro on Monday, Assad said France is likely to face "repercussions" if it took part in US-led plans for military action in response to an alleged chemical weapons attack by Assad's regime last month.

Against this backdrop, western countries are considering a range of military actions against Syria. Iran continues to express opposition saying that any outside military intervention could cause chaos and spread extremism across the Middle East.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday declared that Russia’s national interests were connected with affairs in the Middle East, including Syria. Lavrov said that the national security of nations in the region was seriously harmed following the invasion of Iraq and after what happened in Libya.

Earlier, at a meeting in Cairo, Egypt, to discuss the Syrian situation, Arab League Foreign Ministers issued a resolution urging the United Nations and the international community to take deterrent and necessary measures against the Syrian government, who bore responsibility for their crimes, particularly its alleged chemical attacks.