Syria crisis: Russia won't pressure Assad, says minister
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says there is "absolutely" no chance of Moscow telling Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to stand down.
He told the BBC that Russia was not in the "regime-change game".
The main opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition, has long insisted that President Assad must go before any talks take place.
Mr Lavrov told Daniel Sandford that "it is not for us to decide who should lead Syria. It is for the Syrians to decide".
08 Mar 2013
- From the section Middle East