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(Image source: U.S. State Department)
BY CLIFF JUDY
Early Monday, the Syrian regime and Bashar al-Assad drew both praise and skepticism for
cooperation in destroying some of the country's chemical weapons.
"The U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says President Assad's government in Syria deserves
credit for what he termed as its rapid compliance with the United Nations resolution to eliminate
its chemical weapons." (Via BBC)
Acting under a U.N. resolution, an international team of weapons experts announced Sunday they
had started dismantling Syria's chemical weapon production facilities. (Via Al Jazeera)
This comes a month-and-a-half after an attack in the suburbs of the Syrian capital Damascus
that reportedly killed more than 1,000 people and nearly led to a U.S. military campaign.
Kerry spoke from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation in Bali, which President Obama
was supposed to attend until the U.S. government shutdown changed those plans. (Via The Washington
Post)
Rebel forces in Syria haven't been shy about their skepticism of Assad, saying he could
move some weapons around and hide them from inspectors. Kerry addressed that, talking
about the cooperation so far.
"I'm not going to vouch today for what happens months down the road, but it's a good beginning.
And we should welcome a good beginning." (Via WTNH)
The first stage of the disarmament process is expected to wrap up in early November.