Tuesday, November 3, 2015

In apparent about-face, Russia says Syria’s Assad can step down


MOSCOW — A Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said on Tuesday that Moscow does not consider it a matter of principle that Syrian President Bashar Assad should stay in power, stepping back from its previous position of strong support for him.

Asked whether it was crucial for Moscow that Assad stays, Maria Zakharov said on the Ekho Moskvy radio station: “Absolutely not, we’ve never said that.”  (READ MORE)