The United Nations warned Monday that inspectors face a year-long mission of unprecedented danger in trying to destroy Syria's chemical weapons arsenal, as rebels launched a major offensive.
US Secretary of State John Kerry said Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad could take "credit" for quickly starting the process of destroying his regime's chemical weapons arsenal and thanked Russia for its help.
International experts preparing to destroy Syria's chemical weapons arsenal said they had made "encouraging" progress Thursday and expect to carry out on-site inspections within days.
The arrival in Damascus of a chemical disarmament team on Tuesday is the result of an unprecedented, gruelling US-Russian deal that averted regional war.
A disarmament team is to arrive Tuesday in Damascus on a mission to destroy Syria's chemical arsenal, a day after UN experts wrapped up their investigation of alleged gas attacks.
Syria will comply with a UN resolution to destroy its chemical arsenal, President Bashar al-Assad said Sunday, as weapons experts prepared to head for Damascus to begin the task.
The UN Security Council unanimously passed a landmark resolution Friday ordering the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons and condemning a murderous poison gas attack in Damascus.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani warned Thursday that Syria could become an extremist haven like Taliban-era Afghanistan as he called for cooperation to end the country's civil war.
The United States and Russia agreed a draft UN Security Council resolution Thursday on destroying Syria's chemical weapons, breaking a prolonged deadlock over the country's bitter conflict.
US President Barack Obama on Tuesday demanded the UN Security Council take tough action against Syria, as Russia wrangled with the West over how to strip Bashar al-Assad of chemical arms.
Russia-US wrangling over a resolution to enforce the destruction of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's chemical weapons cast a shadow Monday over the start of the United Nations General Assembly.
With the clock ticking down on a Russian-US deal, the United States said Thursday it expected Syria to hand over a list of its chemical arms within the next few days.
Defiant strongman Bashar Al-Assad promised Wednesday he would surrender Syria's chemical weapons but warned it would take at least a year to do so and cost one billion dollars.
Oil prices fell in Asian trade Monday after a US-Russia deal on Syria's chemical weapons averted a potential Western military strike on the Assad regime.
UN leader Ban Ki-moon said Friday he shares international doubts that Syria's President Bashar al-Assad will respect an international deal on his country's chemical weapons.
President Bashar al-Assad confirmed for the first time that Syria plans to give up its chemical weapons as the United States urged him and his Russian allies to quickly make good on his promise.
Russia issued a stark warning Thursday that unilateral US military action could destroy world order, as the rival great powers discussed a plan to remove Syria's chemical weapons.
President Barack Obama said it was too early to say if a Russian plan to secure Syria's chemical weapons could forestall US air strikes, but vowed to give diplomacy a chance.