Kerry hints 'limited, tailored response' to Syria

Any action that the US might take on Syria is likely to be "limited and tailored response" to ensure that the Bashar al-Assad regime is held "accountable" for an alleged chemical weapons attack in Damascus, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Thursday.

In a statement, that outlined the findings of a US assessment report on the alleged chemical weapons attack Aug 21, Kerry also said the US action would "not involve any boots on the ground" and would not be "open-ended".

He acknowledged that the American people are "tired of war", but "fatigue does not absolve us of our responsibility", said a US Department of State release.

In a statement ahead of a likely imminent US military action on Syria, Kerry said "history would judge us all extraordinarily harshly if we turned a blind eye to a dictator's wanton use of weapons of mass destruction against all warnings, against all common understanding of decency. These things we do know".

He continued saying: "We also know that we have a President who does what he says that he will do. And he has said very clearly that whatever decision he makes in Syria, it will bear no resemblance to Afghanistan, Iraq, or even Libya", said the US Department of State release.

Kerry also clearly stated the US has resolved "it will not assume responsibility for a civil war that is already well underway" and it is committed "to have a diplomatic process that can resolve this through negotiation, because we know there is no ultimate military solution".

The resolution to the Syrian fighting that has led to over 100,000 people getting killed "has to be political". "It has to happen at the negotiating table, and we are deeply committed to getting there", said Kerry.

"And that is at the core of the decisions that must now be made for the security of our country and for the promise of a planet where the world's most heinous weapons must never again be used against the world's most vulnerable people", he concludes.

The statement comes even as the British parliament voted not to participate in a potential military action against Syria, in a strong rebuff to British Prime Minister David Cameron's push for a strong response to the alleged Syrian chemical weapons attack.