France Expects UN Security Council To Agree on Syria Chemical Weapons Resolution

Western countries are dropping calls for force to be used if Syria does not comply with conditions

(Reuters) - France's foreign minister said on Monday he expects the U.N. Security Council to agree on a resolution to enforce the chemical weapons deal withSyria and appeared to back off French calls for the measure to threaten force against President Bashar al-Assad.

Syria's civil war is a top agenda item as world leaders gather this week for the annual U.N. General Assembly. Envoys from the five big U.N. powers - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - have been meeting to negotiate a resolution to back the U.S.-Russian deal reached in Geneva this month to remove Syria's chemical weapons by June 2014.