Syria agrees to hand over Chemical Weapons

Syria has accepted a proposal to put chemical weapons under international control, a Russian news agency has reported. Interfax quoted Syria's foreign minister Walid al Moualem as saying: "We held a very fruitful round of talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov yesterday, and he proposed an initiative relating to chemical weapons. "In the evening we agreed to the Russian initiative." He said Syria had agreed because this would "remove the grounds for American aggression," the report said. A spokesman for David Cameron said: "The onus is now very much on the Russian government and the Assad regime to follow up in a way that shows that this initiative is a serious and genuine offer." Foreign Secretary William Hague urged caution, saying: "How do you tell the difference between breakthroughs and delay tactics? That's exactly what we have to think about here. "We have to make sure that this is not just a distraction tactic." US Republican Senator John McCain said he was "very, very sceptical" about whether the plan would succeed. President Barack Obama said earlier that he would delay a military strike against Syria if President Bashar al Assad's regime agreed to place its chemical weapons under international control. The potential for a diplomatic solution came after Russia proposed that Syria turn its chemical weapons over in return for avoiding strikes from the US. Russia floated the idea after US Secretary of State John Kerry said the only way for Syria to avoid attack was to hand over all of its chemical weapons in a week. Iran said it supported the plan and offered to help the Syrian government put the weapons under international control. China has also said that it backs the plan. In New York later today, France is to formally put forward a UN Security Council draft resolution for Syria to give up its chemical weapons. It will also ask for those responsible to be put on trial at the International Criminal Court. Source Sky News.