U.S. President Barack Obama Open To Russia's Proposal On Syria's Chemical Weapons (Video)

September 9. 2013

U.S. President Barack Obama has indicated during a televised interview that he is open to the idea of having Syria's chemical weapons brought under the control of international authorities, as suggested by Russia. President Obama is questioning the feasibility of the idea, but under the right circumstances, with international participation it could work. Assurances would be required. Proper controls and monitoring could be a solution to avoiding military conflict, as many Syrian lives would be lost in a battle their army would not win.

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Obama says Russian Syria proposal could be a breakthrough

8:44 p.m. EDT September 9, 2013 - President Obama said on Monday he would "run to ground" a proposal outlined by the Russians that would wrest control of chemical weapons from Syria and would potentially head off a U.S. military strike against the Bashar Assad regime.

Obama, who conducted a half dozen television interviews on Monday afternoon to try to gin up support for his call for military action against Syria said he would "absolutely" put off a punitive strike if Assad gave up his weapons.

"It's possible if it's real," Obama told CNN in an interview that aired Monday of the possible breakthrough on the Syria crisis. "And, you know, I think it's certainly a positive development when, the Russians and the Syrians both make gestures toward dealing with these chemical weapons. This is what we've been asking for not just over the last week or the last month, but for the last couple of years."