The Syrian regime on Tuesday admitted it possessed chemical weapons and said it will work with the UN and Russia to “halt possession” of the weapons.
Russia on Monday proposed a plan for international monitors to examine the chemical weapons stockpile with a view to destroy them.
"We are ready to inform about the location of chemical weapons, halt the production of chemical weapons, and show these objects to representatives of Russia, other states and the United Nations," Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said.
"Our adherence to the Russian initiative has a goal of halting the possession of all chemical weapons."
The White House had been pushing for Congress support for military strikes until Tuesday, however a vote looked likely to fail. President Obama has now called off the vote, saying he would await the outcome of the current diplomatic efforts, saying the initiative was happening in part due to the threat of military action by the US.
"It's too early to tell whether [the Russian plan] will succeed, and any agreement must verify that the Assad regime keeps its commitments," he said.
"But this initiative has the potential to remove the threat of chemical weapons without the use of force, particularly because Russia is one of Assad's strongest allies,
"Meanwhile, I've ordered our military to maintain their current posture, to keep the pressure on Assad and to be in a position to respond if diplomacy fails."