Loading ...Senior Republicans downplayed any suggestion of a new military surge to oust the Russian-backed Syrian dictator.
The White House also worked to row back on any suggestion of wider US involvement to remove the Assad regime.
Sean Spicer, the White House press secretary, said they would continue to focus on the mission to defeat Isil in Syria, and would even work – indirectly -alongside Damascus to achieve the aim.
He described the strike as a punishment to remind the Assad regime that there has to be a “mutual level of human decency” in its behaviour. But he added that this action was separate to their wider national security goals.
Mitch McConnell, senate leader, said: “I don’t interpret this as a first step toward anything else in particular other than trying to eliminate or at least make sure [Syria] knows what the consequences are for doing this.”
Rex Tillerson, US Secretary of State, said the salvoes of Tomahawk missiles from two US Navy destroyers in the eastern Med demonstrated Mr Trump was “willing to take decisive action when called for”.
But he went on to say he would “not in any way attempt to extrapolate that to a change in our policy or our posture relative to our military activities in Syria today. There has been no change in that status.”
Syrian officials and their allies also said they did not expect the attack to lead to an expansion of the conflict.
“No doubt this will leave great tension on the political level, but I do not expect a military escalation,” a senior, non-Syrian official in the alliance fighting in support of Assad who declined to be identified told Reuters. “Currently I do not believe that we are going towards a big war in the region.”
The barrage was against a relatively small target and the damage to Assad was “psychological more than physical”, said retired general John Allen, the US envoy to the anti-Isil coalition under Barack Obama.
But it may deter Assad and force him to “think carefully every time” time he wants to launch attacks on his civilian population, Gen Allen said.
He predicted the show of force would help the US regain power on the world stage. “We have this old saying that sometimes it’s not a bad thing to just play the crazy American,” Gen Allen said.
“Not only does America have great power, but it typically demonstrates great restraint. But every now and then using that power gets everybody’s attention. With this Trump put the Assad regime on notice, and sent warning to the Putin, Jinping and Kim Jong Un regimes too.”