Syrian Vice President Farouk al- Shara on Thursday held the U.S. responsible for the "humanitarian catastrophe" caused by its invasion of Iraq which led to an outflow of refugees, the official SANA news agency reported.

"The invasion of Iraq has led to the outpouring of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi refugees to Syria and the rest of the neighboring countries," Shara was quoted as saying in a meeting with Antonio Guterres, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The influx of refugees "have imposed heavy security, social and economic burdens, the U.S. assumes the basic responsibility of this humanitarian catastrophe," Shara said.

For his part, Guterres voiced profound appreciation for Syria to host a big part of the refugees, hailing its efforts to alleviate their sufferings.

Since 2003, two million people have fled Iraq. According to the UNHCR figure, 750,000 of them are now living in Jordan and around one million in Syria.

Guterres is on the last leg of a week-long trip to the Middle East, which has taken him to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan.

Source: Xinhua