When the Secretary of State John Kerry casually suggested that Syria could avert American wrath by giving up its chemical weapons, little did he know that would come as a 'breakthrough' for the Obama government as well as the civil-war-torn Syria.
The U.S.A. welcomed Mr. Kerry's suggestion and proposed that President Bashar al-Assad surrender all their chemical weapons if they were to forgo military attack. “If the establishment of international control over chemical weapons in the country will prevent attacks, then we will immediately begin work with Damascus,” Sergey Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister said. “And we call on the Syrian leadership to not only agree to setting the chemical weapons storage sites under international control, but also to their subsequent destruction.”
Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said Syria welcomed the proposal.
The swift advocacy of the idea by the United Nations secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, and Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron, revealed how the world is striving to avoid a military showdown when “handing over” the chemical weapons might be a far more realistic, peaceful option.
Mr. Obama called the proposal “a potentially positive development.” White House officials said it was worth taking a “hard look” at.
(AW: Suchorita Dutta)
