UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- The five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council met here on Wednesday to discuss Syria's chemical weapons crisis, but no deal was reached, diplomatic sources said.
Each member set out their position, with Russia blocking the move to mount pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are expected to meet in Geneva on Thursday to discuss Russia's proposal that Syria surrender its chemical weapons to avert a U.S. military strike.
Earlier this week, Russia proposed Syria place its stockpiles of chemical weapons under international control in an attempt to provide a diplomatic solution to the crisis, and Syria accepted Russia's proposal.
MOSCOW, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- Russia had evidence that the Syrian opposition possessed and used chemical weapons, a lawmaker said on Wednesday.
"There are reasons to presume that not only the Syrian government but also the militants possess chemical weapons," said Alexei Pushkov, head of the International Affairs Committee of the State Duma, or lower house of the parliament. Full story
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday evening embraced the Russian proposal to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control, opting for a way out of the bind he found himself in after his push for Congressional authorization of a military strike yielded little result.
The sharp turn from military action to multilateral diplomacy signifies the changing times in which Americans are ready to look inward. Full story
WASHINGTON, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama has asked Congress to delay the vote on the resolution authorizing military attack against Syria, in order to give diplomatic process more time to work, media reports quoted senators as saying Tuesday.
Obama's request came during a lunch meeting with Democrats at Capitol Hill. A Senate vote on the military action against Syria " would be delayed until next week, at the earliest," Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin was quoted by Politico as saying after the president's meeting with Senate Democrats. Full story
JERUSALEM, Sept. 10 (Xinhua) -- A Russian proposal for Syria to hand over control of its chemical weapons to international supervisers may avert an almost certain American attack on Syria.
U.S. President Barack Obama stated last month that theUnited Stateswould punish the Syrian government over its alleged use of chemical weapons on Aug. 21, and initiated a buildup of American forces in the region.Full story
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