Assad Says Will Abandon Chemical Arms Once U.S. Stops Threats

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad said he would only finalise plans to abandon his chemical arsenal when the United States stopped threatening to attack him, in an interview broadcast on Thursday.

Syria applied on Thursday to sign up to the global treaty on chemical weapons, a major first step in a Russian-backed plan that would see Damascus give up its stocks of poison gas to avert U.S. military strikes.

Assad told Russian state television he was ready to take further steps – including handing over information on stockpiles – but added the process would not be completed until Washington stopped its threats.

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