The seemingly imminent strike on Syria has been averted if not just temporarily, as President Obama asks Congress to delay their vote on the proposed action against the middle eastern country, as the administration seeks to work with the U.N. Security Council to rid Syria of its chemical weapons through resolutions.

Reacting to Russia’s proposal for Syria to rid itself of chemical weapons by putting their stockpiles under international oversight and for the weapons to ultimately destroyed, Obama made a public statement to America on Tuesday. In his speech, he pointed out that the administration had knowledge that Assad’s regime was responsible for the attacks, with evidence that Assad’s troops prepared for the attacks with distribution of gas masks prior to the rocket attacks that allegedly transported the gas to the sites around Damascus.

He also related to the American people that the United States cannot stand by and allow the Syrian military carry out the attacks but said that any attack would not put boots on the ground and would not be an open-ended war.

But, in the end, Obama stated that the Assad regime has finally admitted to possessing chemical weapoons and had agreed to give them up and even join the Chemical Weapons Convention which prohibits their use. It was at that point in his speech that President Obama said, “I have therefore asked the leaders of Congress to postpone a vote to authorize the use of force while we pursue this diplomatic path. I’m sending Secretary of State John Kerry to meet his Russian counterpart on Thursday, and I will continue my own discussions with President Putin.”

He stated in the speech that the delay will give the U.N. Inspectors time to report their findings and said that the military will remain at its current posture to keep up the pressure on Assad.

As his speech drew to a close, Obama said, “America is not the world’s policeman. Terrible things happen across the globe, and it is beyond our means to right every wrong, but when with modest effort and risk we can stop children from being gassed to death and thereby make our own children safer over the long run, I believe we should act.”

Obama faced serious opposition by Lawmakers in both Houses and it was unsure if he could have garnered enough votes to carry out his planned Syrian response. A loss could have had serious implications for the remainder of this his second and final term.

Secretary of State John Kerry is scheduled to meet with Russia’s Foreign Minister Serget Lavrov in Geneva to further discuss the Syrian situation.

China has also gotten on board on the Syrian question, and after a meeting with U.S. defense officials, China came out in favor of Russia’s proposal. China has been consistant in voting with Russia on the U.N. Security Council on the Syrian issue.

Meanwhile, at the United Nations, American, British and French diplomats are working on a resolution calling for strong action if Syria fails to keep its word on the destruction of chemical weapons.