But he said the distinction "doesn't much matter to the dead".
A British government source came out and said: "The important thing is that this is Britain helping to influence United States policy on Syria and Russian Federation, far from being a poodle".
Syria's stockpiling and continued use of chemical weapons show that "Russia failed in its responsibility to deliver on this 2013 commitment", he went. "We can not let this happen again".
Writing on ConservativeHome, she admitted many people felt "the war in Syria is not our concern" but said the 2013 vote by MPs against action "was a fundamental error by the Commons which has haunted us".
During the G7 talks, Tillerson insisted the Syrian President could not play a part in the country's future, a position shared by the group.
The United States and Britain showed their tough stances against Russian Federation at a meeting of foreign ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations, aiming to impose new sanctions against the key backer of Syria.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country was also ready to stiffen sanctions on Moscow. But Tillerson also said that the top US priority in the region remains the defeat of Islamic State militants.
But he added further uncertainty to the equation by saying that even barrel bombs - which Assad has used with frequency - would necessitate USA action.
The foreign ministers' discussions will prepare the way for a leaders' summit in Sicily at the end of May.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has spent the weekend drumming up support for a joint plan to demand Mr Putin pulls his military out of Syria, The Sunday Times reports. They spoke of the "importance of Russian Federation using its influence to bring about a political settlement".
"In terms of the future of Bashar al-Assad, it is important to us that we undertake a political process that leads to the final conclusion of how Syria will be governed". The resulting political talks would take place under the auspices of the United Nations process in Geneva.
US strike in Syria was a warning for North Korea: Tillerson
On Friday, Johnson showed support for the United States airstrikes in Syria and called the Syrian chemical attacks "deplorable". In an interview to air Sunday on CBS' " Face the Nation ", Tillerson said Russians were not targeted by the strikes.
Tillerson also said Florida Sen.
Tillerson spoke after a meeting of the "likeminded" countries was hastily arranged on the sidelines of the summit of the Group of Seven industrialized economies in Italy, days after the USA for the first time launched airstrikes against Assad's forces.
The G7 blames Assad's military for a deadly chemical attack last week.
While visiting Italy, the top diplomat indicated that Russian Federation could either side with the USA and other western nations or side with other Syrian backers such as Iran and the militant Hezbollah political party. Yet the U.S. has no proof of Moscow's involvement, said the official, who wasn't authorized to speak publicly on intelligence matters and demanded anonymity.
On Monday, Britain's Johnson had described Assad as "toxic" and said it was "time for Vladimir Putin to face the truth about the tyrant he is propping up". It's unclear if Putin and Tillerson will meet.
"We want to bring Russian Federation around to supporting the political process for a peaceful resolution of the Syrian conflict".
The allegation of Russian foreknowledge is grave, even by the standards of the now dismal U.S.
Tillerson's trip comes after an American official said the US has drawn a preliminary conclusion that Russian Federation knew in advance of the chemical attack - an allegation that heightens already acute tensions between Washington and Moscow.
He said if the Russians continued to support the regime in Damascus, they would be "contaminated" by its actions and could find themselves the target of new worldwide sanctions.
Uncertainty about objectives persisted as Tillerson met Tuesday on the sidelines of the Lucca meeting with diplomats from "like-minded" countries on Syria, including Turkey, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates as well as G7 members.
"The United States' priority in Syria and Iraq remains the defeat of ISIS", he added, referring to the so-called Islamic State (IS) group.
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