NICOSIA, September 11 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s initiative on placing chemical weapons in Syria under international control will help avoid a large-scale conflict in Syria and in the whole region, Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said.

In an exclusive interview with Itar-Tass, Anastasiades said: “The initiative creates good prospects for avoiding the war if it is realized in the way proposed by Russia.”

It will help find a political solution to the Syrian problem and remove a threat of war what consequences are unpredictable for Syria and adjacent countries, the Cypriot president said.

“I agree with the Russian proposal and I want it be approved by everyone. The key task is to implement it under the U.N. auspices because in this case we’ll avoid the threat, which exists now,” he said.

Anastasiades’ interview will be broadcast by Rossiya 24 Channel’s Formula of Power and made public in the Rossiiskaya Gazeta newspaper.