Putin: Syria does need changes, but they must not be bloody
MOSCOW. Sept 6 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin acknowledged that Syria needs changes, but insisted that these changes must not involve bloodshed.
"In our view, the most important thing today is to stop violence and make all parties to the conflict - both the government party and the so-called insurgents, or the armed opposition - sit at the negotiating table, determine the future guaranteeing of security to all participants in the internal political process, and only then switch to some practical steps regarding the country's internal organization," Putin said in an interview on Russia Today television.
"We perfectly understand that changes are needed there, but this does not mean that the changes should be bloody," he said.
"I think the first thing that needs to be done there is to stop supplying weapons to the conflict zone, which is continuing. Let me repeat once again: don't make decisions which are being imposed on one of the parties and which are unacceptable for the developments. This is what should be done," Putin said.
Russia's position is dictated by the only thing, that is, "the desire to create a favorable environment for the situation to develop positively for years ahead," Putin said. At the same time, Moscow is not interested in "getting absorbed in internal Islamic conflicts and being involved in score-settling between the Sunnis, the Shiites, and the Alawis and so on," he said.
Talking about the UN's role in settling the conflict in Syria, Putin disagreed with the criticism that the organization "has failed to act as a united front."
"If the UN and its Security Council turned into an office rubberstamping decisions by one of the parties concerned, then it would cease to exist, just as the League of Nations once did," he said.