Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei LavrovReuters

Syria has accepted a Russian deal agreeing to turn its arsenal of chemical weapons over to the international community, to avoid the prospect of a U.S. led strike.

The Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muellem made the announcement after a meeting in Moscow with the Russian parliament:

"Yesterday (Monday) we held a round of very productive negotiations with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and he put forward an initiative regarding chemical weapons. Already in the evening we accepted Russia's initiative."

He added that Damascus had opted to accept the Russian plan to derail what he labelled  "U.S. aggression."

Russian news agency Interfax reported that Lavrov had confirmed Moscow was working to put together a road-map for the plan. AFP reported that the Arab League had added its support to the plan, although US President Barack Obama has reacted with skepticism.

The Russian plan comes alongside news that Moscow has fast-tracked the transfer of several S-300 missile batteries into Syria.

Earlier today, the French Foreign Minister announced that his country would be tabling a resolution at the U.N. Security Council calling on Syria to publicly declare its entire chemical weapons stockpile.

French Foreign Minister said the resolution would state that violation of the resolution by Syria would be met by an "extremely serious" response.

France, along with the US, UK, Russia, and China are permanent members of the Security Council. Each has the power to veto resolutions.