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How a 'gaffe' could stop a war

AFP, Washington
At first it seemed like just another of John Kerry's musings -Syria could stop threatened US military strikes by placing its chemical weapons stockpile under international control.
But within hours, as the US top diplomat was still in the air flying back to Washington from London, what appeared to be an off-the-cuff remark caught fire, with Russia embracing it and the Syrian regime also seemingly coming on board.
Late Monday, Obama appeared to give it his blessing, saying that what was now being seen as a surprise Russian initiative could prove to be a "significant breakthrough" in changing the course of the brutal Syrian war and the thinking of the Syrian regime.
Asked early Monday in London if there was anything Syrian President could do to avert a US military strike, Kerry replied: "Sure."
"He could turn over every single bit of his
chemical weapons to the international community in the next week. Turn it over, all of it, without delay, and allow a full and total accounting for that," Kerry told reporters.
He quickly seemed to shoot down his own idea, adding: " But he isn't about to do it, and it can't be done, obviously."
Reporters traveling back to Washington aboard Kerry's plane agonized about what he had meant, all the while being assured that there was "no serious proposal" to address Syria's chemical weapons stock on the table.
Except that while Kerry was still in mid-flight Russian
Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov took the ball and ran with in, calling on Damascus to "place the chemical weapons under international control and then have them destroyed."
Such a plan would help "avoid military strikes," Lavrov insisted, apparently after he had talked for 14 minutes with Kerry two hours after take-off from London.
During the call, Lavrov said he had heard Kerry's comments and Moscow would be willing to engage in the idea of an international supervision of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile.
As Lavrov's offer ignited a storm of questions, it remained unclear whether this was just another misstep by the gaffe-prone secretary of state, or a carefully choreographed plant, providing Obama with a possible exit strategy.
Obama himself added to the mystery by saying he had discussed the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of a G20 summit in St Petersburg last week.
Moving fast before Kerry hit the ground again, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem in Moscow for talks "welcomed" the Russian initiative - even though Assad has never admitted to possessing chemical weapons.
Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron was also quick to join in, saying it would be a "big step" if Assad were to hand over its chemical weapons. And German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was "an interesting proposal from Russia" adding she hoped "action would follow."