Russia does not have special interests in Syria - Putin
PARIS. June 2 (Interfax) - Russia does not have special interests in Syria and seeks only to make the conflicting parties reconcile, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
"We have had very good relations with Syria for many years. But when I hear that Russia has some special interests, this is an absolute delusion," Putin said at a press conference following talks with French President Francois Hollande in Paris on Friday.
Russia and Syria "do not have outstanding volumes of trade and economic ties or real military cooperation," he said.
"The only thing that concerns us is that peaceful civilians are getting killed and that the situation is being radicalized and is going out of control," he said.
"Our goal is to make all conflicting parties reconcile. We do not choose between those who are with us and who are against us there; we want to take care about all of them and make a peaceful political resolution of the problem possible," he added.
Asked whether Moscow is willing to grant shelter to Bashar Assad and his family, Putin noted, "He has been to Paris much more frequently than to Moscow. So let's look at this problem from this perspective."
Anything that is acceptable to the Syrian people in resolving the crisis would be acceptable to Moscow, he said.
"In order to find this acceptable solution, it is necessary to stop violence on both sides, seat all the conflicting parties at the negotiating table and create a situation in which they could come to terms with each other," Putin said.
The Syrian people should decide themselves about the country's governmental system, he said.
"If you think that we can make decisions for other people, go to Cairo and try to run in presidential elections in Egypt. You can't do that, can you? You cannot do so in relation to Syria, either, and no one can," Putin said.
"Why do we think that, if we remove a leader from power, then absolute wellbeing will settle there tomorrow?" Putin said.
Everyone knows "what a tyrant Gaddafi was," Putin said.
"Perhaps it's true. But do you know what was happening in Sirte after insurgents entered there? Why don't you write about this? Has humanitarian bliss come there now?" Putin said addressing journalists.
Russia "is not for Assad and not for his opponents," but it wants to help put an end to violence and prevent a large-scale civil war, Putin said.
"This is the goal of our policy on the Syrian track," he said.
