Syria
Read AlJazeera's latest news story on a day of shifting positions on what to do in Syria. The story can be found here.
Syria
This has been an extraordinary day of shifting positions among the political elite of Washington. Let's recap the events:
Responding to a question from a reporter, secretary of state John Kerry says this afternoon that there would be no need for military action if Assad gave up his chemical weapons - "but he isn't about to do it, and it can't be done, obviously."
Russia, not missing a beat, took the answer and proposed a diplomatic solution - all Syrian chemical weapons will be handed over to an international team.
The White House later said that Kerry's comment was rhetorical but within hours - hours in which the UN's secretary-general Ban Ki-moon weighed in - the administration position had changed into one where the Russian plan could be considered.
Kerry says the plan will not derail the process for Congress to authorise military action and that the US will not play games.
Later, President Obama fronts interviews on no less than six US networks to say the Russian plan was a "potentially possitive development", and instructs Kerry to try to find a political solution. These interviews were originally intended for Obama to push the case for military action in Syria.
At about the same time, two of his party's most senior senators also release statements independent of the White House saying that the plan has legs and should be considered. Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader, then postpones a Senate vote on military action, which was due to take place on Wednesday.
Syria
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on Monday he was delaying a key procedural vote on authorising use of force in Syria until President Barack Obama publicly addresses the issue:
I want to make sure the president [makes] his case to the Senate and the American people before voting on this matter," Reid said. Obama meets with senators Tuesday and addresses the nation that night, while Reid had earlier planned to hold the test vote Wednesday.
Al Jazeera's Kimberly Halkett says that the delay showed a "real shift" and comes on the back of Feinstein and Levin's statements. Everyone is now saying more time is needed to consider the diplomatic solution: "There is a very strong feeling from Republicans and Democrats that authorisation for military strikes needs to be pushed back."
Harry Reid, delay, vote,Obama
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Two high-ranking senators, Carl Levin and Dianne Feinstein, have reacted to the Russian plan to decommission Syria's chemical weapons.
Carl Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said:
It’s long overdue that Russia weigh in to get its client state to give up its chemical weapons and abide by international law. If Russia is serious, and not just helping Syria stall, it could make a difference. But we shouldn’t get our hopes up too high given Syria’s past behavior and Russia’s lockstep support for Syria with weapons and with its United Nations veto.
Senator Dianne Feinstein, the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said:
I have read the announcement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that his country has asked Syria to transfer control of its chemical weapons to international monitors for destruction to prevent an international strike. I would welcome such a move.I believe that Russia can be most effective in encouraging the Syrian president to stop any use of chemical weapons and place all his chemical munitions, as well as storage facilities, under United Nations control until they can be destroyed.
USA, Washington, lavrov, Senators,chemical weapons
Syria
Taking over the Syria Live blog this evening, producer @safeeyah will be joining @gbaker76 will be keeping you up to date with the latest on Syria and any additional reading that passes our way.
Watch this space for more.
For now, if you have been struggling to work out what exactly is taking place in Syria, take a look at this animation by animatedpress.com. It explains the origins of the conflict and also the ramifications of it.
Of course, the views expressed in the video and not necessarily shared by Al Jazeera.
Animation, conflict, Five minutes,origin
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President Barack Obama has given the US network ABC an interview. Here's his opinion on the Russian offer of decommissioning - "moderately positive". However, he doesn't want a let up in the decision on military strikes.
Syria
Hello from Doha, Graeme Baker here taking over the Syria liveblog. We'll start the new shift with an article from a few months back looking at how feasible it would be to decommission Syria's chemical weapons stockpile during a civil war. It's complicated, say two experts on decomissioning, @cherylrofer and Aaron Stein.
You can read their article at the Global Mail website.
As ever, email me at graeme.baker@aljazeera.net or @gbaker76 on Twitter.
Syria
Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is making a live appearance on Turkish HaberTurk. Asked about the Russian proposal on Syria, he said:
I’m not sure this plan came out of serious negotiations. When we were in St Petersburg [for G20], this was not on the agenda. But in any case, ridding a country, a neighbour especially, of chemical weapons is a positive thing and we see it as such.
Davutoglu also added that the Assad regime needs to be punished for what it has done, as leaving such an action unanswered would be unacceptable.
He said moving further, "any group aligning with the Syrian regime shares responsibility of its crimes" and that no rational actor is likely to continue openly supporting Assad.
Syria
More reactions are coming in concerning Russia's proposal that Syria accept international control over its chemical weapon stock:
France has said that the Russian proposal to have Syrian President Bashar al-Assad hand over his chemical weapons arsenal was acceptable under conditions including a UN Security Council resolution, with consequences if he failed to comply.
The proposal of the Russian foreign minister... is worthy of close scrutiny," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said in a statement.
Syria
Mark Kimmitt is a retired brigadier-general in the US army and a former deputy assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East.
He talks to Al Jazeera about the Syria crisis and the military intervention option.
Syria
Hillary Clinton, former US secretary of state, has said any move by Syria to surrender its chemical weapons to international control would be an "important step", according to the Associated Press news agency.
Clinton spoke at the White House on Monday after meeting with President Barack Obama. She is crediting current Secretary of State John Kerry and Russia's government with floating the proposal.
She says the world must deal with Syria's chemical weapons threat "as swiftly and comprehensively as possible". She says Russia must support the world's efforts or be held accountable.
Meanwhile, Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane in Washington DC says Kerry would hesitate to put his name on Russia's plan:
Syria
US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed Syria's chemical weapons in a phone call on Monday, a State Department spokeswoman said.
The call came after Russia proposed that Syria put its chemical weapons stock under international control to try to avert potential US military strikes over last month's alleged chemical-weapons attack near Damascus.
Syria
The US will take a hard look at a Russian proposal to put Syrian chemical weapons under international control, but it is sceptical, the State Department has said.
"It's important to note that this proposal comes in the context of the threat of US action and the pressure that the president is exerting," US Deputy National Security Adviser Tony Blinken said.
"So it's even more important that we don't take the pressure off and that Congress give the president the authority he's requested," he said.
Syria
Al Jazeera's Kimberly Halkett has this update from Washington DC:
This could really change the dynamic, bring pause and caution [to US policy]. An alternative that had zero support up until now was one that would allow Assad to sign an international treaty and give him 45 days to do so, saying he won’t use chemical weapons. This hasn’t been introduced in Senate but this new plan [introduced by Russia] could draw support for it. The bottom line is dynamics have changed.
Syria
A vote on whether the US should take military action in Syria is expected before Congress in the coming days.
But many representatives are unsure of which way to vote.
Many, like Democratic congressman Jim McDermott, have been turning to their constituents to help them make up their minds.
Al Jazeera's Tonya Mosley reports from Seattle.
Syria
Fourteen more countries have signed on to a statement condemning Syria for the August 21 chemical weapons attack, and calling for a strong international response to hold the Syrian government accountable, the White House has said.
The additional countries brought the total number backing the statement to 25, as the United States tries to marshal international support for military strikes against Syria.
The new countries include the United Arab Emirates and Qatar.
Syria
Syria welcomes a Russian proposal to place the nation's chemical weapons under international control, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem has said after talks in Moscow, praising the Kremlin for seeking to "prevent American aggression".
Moallem, who spoke to reporters through an interpreter, stopped short of saying explicitly that President Bashar al-Assad's government accepted it.
I state that the Syrian Arab Republic welcomes the Russian initiative, motivated by the Syrian leadership's concern for the lives of our citizens and the security of our country, and also motivated by our confidence in the wisdom of the Russian leadership, which is attempting to prevent American aggression against our people.
Meanwhile, Britain's Cameron has said to his Parliament that Syria should be encouraged to place its chemical weapons arsenal under international supervision, but said the world needed to ensure that discussion of such an idea did not become a distraction.
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