Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had harsh words for Russia ahead of his first visit to Moscow as the nation's top diplomat, questioning whether Russia was incompetent or not serious about getting rid of Bashar Assad's chemical weapons.

Following the G7 summit in Italy, Tillerson again defended the American missile strike on an air base in central Syria last week. He said the strike was a response to the use of chemical weapon by Assad on Syrians, and it was clear the Russians have failed in their task of ridding the country of chemical weapons.

Rex Tillerson: U.S. hopes Assad will not be part of Syria's future, says Russia needs to decide what side they're on https://t.co/Ice9fJifqr— New Day (@NewDay) April 11, 2017



"Russia has failed to uphold the agreements that have been entered into under multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions," Tillerson said. "These agreements stipulated is the guarantor of a Syria free of chemical weapons, that they would also locate secure and destroy all such armaments in Syria.

"Stockpiles and continued use demonstrate whether Russia failed in its responsibility to deliver on this 2013 commitment. It is unclear whether Russia failed to take this obligation seriously or Russia has been incompetent, but this distinction doesn't much matter to the dead. We can't let this happen again."

Tillerson is heading to Moscow following the G7 meeting in Italy where he will meet face-to-face with Kremlin officials for the first time as secretary of state. Tillerson has a long history of doing business with Russia as the head of Exxon Mobil, but it appears he will be heading there in a vastly different mood this week.

He emphasized again that the strike on Thursday that killed six Syrians was a justified response to the regime using chemical weapons on its own people.

While some backers of President Trump have claimed the action is a violation of his "America First" policies, Tillerson said the strikes were meant to keep the United States safe.

"We do not want the regime's uncontrolled stockpile of chemical weapons to fall into the hands of ISIS or other terrorist groups who could, and want, to attack the United States or its allies," Tillerson said, "nor can we accept the normalization of the use of chemical weapons by other actors in Syria or elsewhere."

He added that his desire is the use of international norms in order to come to a conclusion that takes Assad out of power.

"Many nations look to the Geneva process as a way to solve the Syrian conflict in a way that produces stability and gives the Syrian people the opportunity to determine their own political future," Tillerson said. "Our hope is Bashar Assad is not part of that future."