There are new hopes of a global diplomatic agreement to resolve the Syrian crisis.

Interfax quoted Syria's foreign minister Walid al Moualem as saying: "We held a very fruitful round of talks with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov yesterday, and he proposed an initiative relating to chemical weapons.

"In the evening we agreed to the Russian initiative."

He said Syria had agreed because this would "remove the grounds for American aggression," the report said.

US President Barack Obama said earlier that he would delay a military strike against Syria if President Bashar al Assad's regime agreed to place its chemical weapons under international control.

In New York later today, France is to formally put forward a UN Security Council draft resolution for Syria to give up its chemical weapons.

It will also ask for those responsible to be put on trial at the International Criminal Court.

The French foreign minister Laurent Fabius says his country will bring a resolution to the UN Security Council demanding that Syria hand over its stock of chemical weapons.

That is a proposal backed by Russia which says it is working with Syria to develop a concrete plan for putting the weapons under international control.

US Secretary of State John Kerry yesterday said that handing over the Syrian stock of chemical weapons was the only way to reach a diplomatic solution to the current impasse.

But last night US President Barack Obama says he was sceptical about Syria complying with the idea.

Russia floated the idea after US Secretary of State John Kerry said the only way for Syria to avoid attack was to hand over all of its chemical weapons in a week.

British Prime Minister David Cameron said the Russian plan was "hugely welcome". But he warned that it must not become a "distraction" from resolving the crisis over poison gas attacks on civilians in the country.

The US Department of State had initially attempted to play down the significance of Mr Kerry's comments, claiming he had been speaking "rhetorically".

But Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov immediately seized on the comments, raising the prospect of international observers supervising the handover.

Syria has welcomed the proposal.

On Monday night, with a breakthrough in sight, US Senate majority leader Harry Reid postponed a crucial vote to authorise military action, due to be held on Wednesday.

A series of six television interviews with Mr. Obama was also aired, with the US President welcoming Syria's statement as a potentially "positive development".

Asked by Diane Sawyer of ABC News if he would delay an attack should Mr Assad yield control of his chemical weapons, Mr Obama answered: "Absolutely, if in fact that happened."

He added "I want to make sure that norm against use of chemical weapons is maintained.

"That's in our national security interest. If we can do that without a military strike, that is overwhelmingly my preference."

He said the US needed to maintain its threat of military action, arguing that any potential breakthrough was due to the sustained pressure on the Assad regime.

In a separate interview with NBC, Mr. Obama took the step - unusual for any politician - of conceding he may lose his campaign in Congress for military authorisation.

"I wouldn't say I'm confident" of the outcome, he said.

Legislation approved in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee last week would give Mr Obama a maximum of 90 days to carry out a military attack.

It includes a ban on combat operations on the ground in Syria.

Mr. Obama meets with Democratic and Republican senators on Tuesday and gives another televised address to the nation tonight.

Three polls out on Monday, by CNN/ORC International, the Pew Research Centre, and The Washington Post/ABC, indicate 63% of Americans oppose strikes.

Most of those surveyed between September 6 and September 8 said they believed even limited strikes would lead to a long-term military commitment.

The US accuses Mr. Assad's government of being behind the August 21 attack in Damascus, which killed 1,429 people.