what happened is the alloites from which the assad regime hails, the assad family, they made their way through the military. they represent a minority of the population. they were in the period which the when the french administered the syrian republic, they made their way up through the military and after ku de ta they seized power and assad took the reigns completely. host: this headline, pentagon prepares for the collapse of the syrian regime, he points out the pentagon has set up a special team for the imminent collapse of the regime of president assad, the crisis asset team will help prepare the u.s. military for whatever role it might take in the conflict. it appears to be reaching a decisive moment in which the government could fall apart. can you elaborate? guest: what the stories are alluding to is that the u.s. government has finally realized the assad regime and the situation in syria cannot be contained by diplomacy at the u.n. a lot of people in the administration have been there for a long time that this conflict is being driven from the ground up. it has been for actual

do you agree assad's days are numbers? there are defections in significant number in his military and there are bombings in the capital. what does this mean? can he survive? >> you know, i think ambassador rice is probably correct but i don't think russia and china agree with her yet. it is not just that they like assad. they think he may survive. we're going to have to persuade them otherwise before we can get any kind of coorption cooperation from moscow or beijing. there is still a chance that this could go on for a long time and that assad's regime may wind up in part of the country. it may wind up facing more and more contested areas in certain cities but it may hold on because the insurgency afterall is a fairly motley crue of divorce groups that right now are increasingly good at building car bombs but can't hold territory themselves. many in the army still see assad as the lesser of two evils because they fear of what could come about from a sunni insurgency which is what they're facing and many of them, of course

try to i do apologize you're saying that president assad. is actually being a form of balance to keep some sort of normality and peace in syria many might draw a similar conclusion to saddam hussein in iraq you manage to keep some amount of peace and quiet between the shia and the sunni was it let's talk about you know moments ago you mentioned the whole issue that syria could become a base for extremists well they're not going to be extremists unless they're heavily armed and certainly the weapons and the weapons smuggling have certainly becoming across the syrian border the russian foreign minister sergei lavrov say that he insists that the geneva agreement should ban the smuggling of weapons into syria but international partners have failed to support this idea why. well i think because they are vying to gain influence in the region i would say the united states and saudi arabia are definitely behind all of this i mean you've got the arms smuggling going through northern lebanon right now and and i think the assad regime has been trying t

on assad. to do what is right and step down and allow for the peaceful transition. >> we call on our friends and our partners internationally to recognize that assad is a spent force hecht will not be a part of syria's future. >> at the united nations, plan to vote on a new security council resolution deferred until thursday. western intelligence agencies armed with sketchy information looked for signs of more high level defection and continued rebel momentum. >> we have seen other indications that maintains the control over the armed forces generally. he could decide however to try to mount a counter offensive, even using chemical weapons. that could extend the bloodshed quite a bit longer. >> with president assad's whereabouts stale mystery, u.s. officials have begun preparing for post assad era with three aims. first, securing his stock piles of conventional and chemical weapons. but then also determining who the most viable opposition leaders might be. convincing them that america stood wit

to ending what assad himself has called all-out war in the country. kofi annan describes the latest round of talks as positive, but there has been no the escalation on the part of the syrian regime. >> army tanks continue to shell opposition stronghold on monday, with reports of more than 30 people killed. and in a rare television interview, the increasingly isolated syrian leader lashed out at the international community and accused some foreign governments of trying to overthrow his government by backing terrorists. >> kofi annan's third meeting with the syrian president was a brief one, but as the u.n. special envoy returned to his hotel, he had optimistic words for the waiting reporters. annan said the talks had been a "candid and constructive." >> we discussed the need to end the violence and ways and means of doing so. we agreed an approach which we would also share -- which i will share with the armed opposition. i also stress the importance of moving ahead for the political dialogue which the president accepts. >> annan has given little inform

assad's older sister. we have amateur video claiming it shows syrian people celebrated deadly attack on the government. the activists say the syrian uprising has killed 17,000 people since last march. now, the white house is putting new pressure on nearly every member of the in place syrian government. dramatic developments today. james? >>reporter: president obama telephoned russian president putin from the white house this morning to discuss syria the whereabouts bashar al-assad are not known. and we do not know if he is in damascus. no one, no one can say how long he will remain in power. but, policymakers here at the state department are bracing for the prospect of regime change in syria occurring on a much swifter timetable than previously contemplated. analyst whose monitor social media like twitter and who have advised the state department during the arab spring on how to mine open source online data and how to interpret it is warning the assad regime or control of damascus could collapse in 36 hour

a very close ally of president bashar al-assad. now to some of the other stories making headlines around the world today. two men have been found guilty of systematically stealing babies from the families of political prisoners. they were jailed in an argentine court together. here is our correspondent. >> jorge videla has already been convicted of crimes against humanity. the trials of stolen babies is probably the most gruesome of charges he has had to face in court. mr. videle and bignone received lengthy jail sentences. the verdict was met from cheers from relatives and friends. this had been one of the most compelling cases in argentine history. the accused were said to have overseen a systematic plan to steal babies from political prisoners, who were tortured and killed there in the country's last military rule, which lasted until the early 1980's. the trial is the result of years of campaigning. the human rights organization -- >> this is justice. we started this in 1996. we did not know if we were going to make it to this m

turkey's prime minister called on assad to step down. russia remains at loggerheads with the west over the wording of a possible security council resolution that would impose sanctions on the assad regime. >> for more on this, i am joined by representative from the german institute of security and international affairs. are we looking at the beginning of the end of the assad regime? >> we do not know, but it is obviously a hard hit. assef shawkat was a central personality, probably the most important personality besides assad in the crackdown on the country. the fact that the rebels are now fighting on the streets of the capital is, of course, a major sign of weakness on the part of the regime. >> exactly. the rebels are calling this the liberation of damascus. they appear very emboldened. is this not prove that they are being supported by outside forces? -- is this not proof? better they are supported by the americans, by the u.s., by qatar, by saudi arabia -- >> they are supported by the americans, by the u.s., by saudi arabia. >> you

is gone and while the document which was signed in geneva does not actually imply that assad has to go it implies that it's up to the syrian people to decide if they want to see him gone or not so these are the different interpretations which could really be a problem in the u.n. security council especially with great britain and the united states there trying to push article seven through into the new resolution on syria which doesn't rule out foreign military intervention which russia and china are still strongly against so it could be just have to see how it goes of course there is still time for more dialogue and communication but also on the wednesday russia's foreign minister silvio off once again stressed that moscow will not support any sanctions on syria since it will be a one sided approach only pressuring one side of the conflict or the authorities in moscow things that will only lead to more violence in the country. when you go in as you mentioned there today as we did have the meeting with the turkish prime minister. and with the russian president after they met. addres

came out there were pictures of assad perfectly fine having not been injured also reports of assad's wife coming here to moscow and about those rumors the foreign ministry here in russia has said on the general idea of rumors that the world is usually awash with rumors these rumors tended to game some information around and spread very fast i would not like to comment on any rumors today i think that it is a very good honest information trap and that we should be careful not to fall into it so basically a lot of information out there lots of misinformation out there and telling people to be. careful what they believe. almost in central moscow police have used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse angry protesters throwing the streets of spain dozens of people were injured and a number of activists detained during the latest nationwide down to a sturdy demonstrations and a major show of strength hundreds of thousands have been taking part in the protests people marching eighty cities across the country to protest against more suffocating of steroids which is to come that's all to th

a syria products fair has been held to support the assad regime. which is struggling amid economy sanctions. >> because of the embargo, i believe that we can work together. >> iran seems to be supporting military support to syria. with rocket launchers and other arments. in january, antigovernment forces released image of people who are said to be iranian snipers helping the assad forces. iran denied it. saying they were engineers dispatched to help with infrastructure work. looking increasingly like a proxy war of neighboring countries. fighting in syria is intensifying. nhk world. >> people in japan's northeast are focused on overcoming the challenges of the 2011 disaster. but it won't be easy 37 they have to rebuild homes, businesses, entire communities. we will show you their struggles and their successes on the road ahead, every wednesday at 1:00 p.m. japan time, here on newsline. >>> new research into last year's fukushima daiichi nuclear accident -- records were exam naned at number two reactor. they compared the radiation data from the surr

it would mean assad is leaving very soon. i don't know, i mean, a lot of people were glad about what happened yesterday, but it just [unintelligible] we anticipate massacres, because yesterday's was huge. we don't know what is going happen next. >> how are you keeping yourself safe? why have you agreed to do this interview? >> honestly, [unintelligible] i am keeping myself safe by moving around from one place to another. i do not stay in one place for a long time but i do not use my phone alive. -- i do not use my phone a lot. i use the internet right now, for example. i tried to be careful talking on the phone and use the people wisely that i spend time with. stuff like that. >> what would you like people in the united states and the outside world to know, the main message you want to get out to other people around the world, even as the united nations failed on a string of furred, a new discussion as to whether to extend the -- has failed, even now, new discussion as to whether to extend the monitoring effort? >> [unintelli

he said should assad regime collapse there will be regional war. hezbollah will back syria because they had our back in the 2006 lebanon crisis. should we get involved there will be doomsday. if we don't get involved the poor people of syria will be continued massacred on the streets and we'll continue to legitimatize this axis between hezbollah, syria and iran. megyn: it is hard to know what to root for sitting here in the studio because we've been talking about bashar assad's murder through his troops of babies. i don't even just mean children the i mean babies who are getting murdered as they go door-to-door execution-style with guns up against their heads making parents watch. that's what we're dealing with over there. kt, you hear about that guy losing power you say, okay, great. but who steps in? i'm not saying the opposition forces are all al qaeda there is reports of them infiltrating to some extent. some phones fighting against the regime. who steps into the power vacuum? could they be al qaeda? are they islamist? are they radicals or well

came out there were pictures of assad perfectly fine having not been injured also reports of assad's wife coming here to moscow and about those rumors the foreign ministry here in russia has said on the general idea of rumors that the world is usually awash with rumors these rumors tend to game some information ground and spread very fast i would not like to comment on any rumors today i think that it is a very honest information trap and that we should be careful not to fall into it so basically a lot of information out there lots of misinformation out there and telling people to be careful what they believe what it's going to be to try and clear it up for so much there in moscow thank you. well at the u.n. observer mission to syria expires later on friday with the security council still split over a resolution to extend it another vote expected shortly after russia and china vetoed a western backed a draft which they considered unacceptable from new york with. more important. russia has from the get go that he would not support any resolutions on syria that would include the potent

the russians don't want to see pressure put on assad. they are still retaining some relationship with the syrian military. they have certain military-to-military ties that they're not ready to give up. so the question isn't, would both sides like this to be resolved politically and diplomatically? of course everybody does. but the russians aren't prepared to see any real pressure placed on assad. so they're prepared to veto, as best as we can tell, this resolution that calls on sanctions to be intensified if assad doesn't stop the crackdown. ands that the prescription for another vetoed resolution and a divided international community. >> could something like that have a hope of realistic success, more sanctions toppling the assad regime? >> i don't think sanctions are going to do it. assad is in a fight for his life. we've seen by the events today that fight is more closer to home. the only thing that's going to convince him to move is if he really sees the whole system collapsing around him. >> general clark, speaking of systems collap

the al-assad regime only knows violence. it appears he and his cronies will only go through violence. we have to look at the options available to us. rafif jouejati what about what is happening right now? meetingut kofi annan with al-assad today? >> kofi annan by his own emission has tendered a failed peace plan and apparently he has reached some agreement with bashar al-assad on a political solution, but they have not communicated what that is. what i do know is there is a lot of talk of a peaceful transition and there is some talk about power-sharing. i can tell you the power sharing scenario is most likely totally unacceptable to the syrian street. any sort of dialogue with the regime is tantamount to negotiating with once executioner. i believe that is entirely unacceptable. >> what have you heard about the latest news of security forces shelling parts including damascus, reports of more than 100 people killed, mainly civilians? >> yes, this happens every day. this is part of what we wake up to, go to sleep with. the dai

jon: if assad falls are you one of those who said anything is better than assad? or could there be real danger in another muslim brotherhood kind of takeover in syria? >> i think that danger is real in terms of radical islamists potentially taking over but i also see it as an opportunity where we can have influence and we should get in there and work with these opposition forces. there are moderates in this group. as well as radicals to be sure. a lot of the former military are moderates. and i think we can get on the ground and work with them. we may be working with them already, central intelligence agency. i don't know. if i did i couldn't talk about it anyway but let's make the assumption possibly we're doing some of that. but they need more than that. they need a genuine partnership not just at the military level but the political level as well. jon: but you talk to folks at our state department they fear if you wind up arming the rebels you have only enabled the growth of another al qaeda-type group? >> the fact of the matter is assad is eventually going to

security forces loyal to assad are retaliating for the attack. state television reports that assad's forces have restored security in the district south of the capital after fierce fighting. a u.k.-based human rights group says at least 280 people died across the nation on thursday alone. that would be the highest daily death toll since the violence began 16 months ago. security authorities in neighboring lebanon estimate 18,000 people fled there from syria over the past couple of days. >>> diplomats at the security council are discussing the extent of the u.n. observers' mission beyond friday. the council is scheduled to vote on the issue today, but members remain deeply divided. russia and china vetoed a resolution that would have imposed nonmilitary sanctions on syria. earlier, shery ahn spoke with an expert on the middle east at the institute of energy economics japan. he analyzed the results of the security council vote and the impact it will have on the situation in syria and surrounding nations. >> the security council still divided. what

those who have been with assad feel perhaps in many cases even more tendency to want to stay with assad because they are very worried about how they'll be treated by the other side or by a government run by the same insurgents. in other words, the more blood that gets spilled the more people sort of revert back to their own camps their own bastians and they may actually be even more reluctant to switch sides. you could see 10 pest of assad's military defect but the other 90% be more committed to the regime than it was before. i'm making the numbers up. you see the point. i don't necessarily believe this has a snowballing effect. it is going to weaken assad and weaken the army but it may stabilize at a certain point soon. >> eliot: these are horrific options. ambassador rice after the u.n. vote clearly upset. she said that the united states would work with a diverse coalition of countries outside the council meaning the u.n. security council to bring pressure to bear on the syrian regime. what are the options with whom can we work and what can we actually do that we are not already doing

it is unclear if president assad was there. the government isn't saying. >> it is part of the conflict. >> reporter: assad has not been seen publicly since this interview with german television two weeks ago. the opposition says it planted the bomb with inside help. >> the army can reach anyone inside damascus. even bashar assad, himself, he is not safe anymore. >> reporter: after 17 months of fighting, syrian rebels have carved out rural safe havens. brought the fight to damascus and now brought it to assad's inner circle. the defense secretary leon panetta called today's attack a real escalation. >> this is a situation that is rapidly spinning out of control. >> reporter: already in rebel held provinces in syria, they are celebrating hoping today's bombing is a sign that assad's days in power are numbered, as u.s. officials renew their calls for the syrian president to immediately step down. in addition to disrupting the leadership, you could imagine the psychological impact of an attack like this. bashar al assad doesn't kno

kofi annan said president al-assad has discussed political transition with him. there is a lot more going on. i am joined by a distinguished scholar from the wood row wilson program. kofi annan said president al-assad had discussed transitional government and even offered up a name. is this progress? >> no. because i think president al-assad understands that any political transition means he is going to be out of a job or worse. i think this is buying time, juggling, shuffling options to try to create the the sense that the al-assads are ready for transition. but i don't think that is going to enter the mill right now. >> so you can discuss transition by saying it is not going to happen? >> sure. the president has supporters in the country. once this shifts to the political arena, it seems it is going to be just as difficult to ease the al-assads out of power. the bottom line i think is this. there has been too much blood for a diplomatic solution with the al-assad's, but horrifically, not enough blood to make it work. there is no diplomacy that is going to work

syria the opposition candidates here in moscow to try to push for the removal of president bashar al assad. russia's a flood ravaged the southern region where over one hundred sixty people were killed and tens of thousands lost. on the former boss of barclays bank gives up a twenty million pound bonus after resigning. for a tidy payoff that claims that big bankers are rewarded. wrongdoing as the parliamentary failed. on screen online international news and comment live from our new center here in moscow this is. russia says it's ready to host another meeting of world powers over the continuing violence in syria members of the main syrian opposition alliance are in moscow and have reiterated their main aim is to oust the current leader bashar al assad. reports. no dialogue though with the government of president bashar al assad that was the main message from syria's main opposition group which is convened here on the eve of talks between the head of the syrian national council and the russian foreign minister on wednesday now for with the violence in syria essentially entering its sixteen m

continues the prime minister of turkey comes to moscow to try and convince russia to get tough on the assad regime. coming up i've got all the details. of the london olympics as the british with the games. to have you with us here on our today. life in moscow serious. deputy have been killed in a suicide bombing in damascus and the minister is the most senior official within the syrian government who have been killed since the conflict last year. to the violence that's been rocking the syrian capital for days now and in the very near future will be crossing live. to bring us all the latest developments on this story. well for now the turkish prime minister is here in russia for talks in reaction to the growing bloodshed in syria while moscow's staunchly opposed to any unilateral sanctions on the regime in damascus ankara has other views let's get more on the story sean thomas now joining us live here on r.t. good to see you sean obviously rusher insists it doesn't want any boots on the ground in syria do you think a turkey will be able to convince moscow otherwise. well roy it is certainly

syrian regime, assad military can't be trusted in using this. it could use it against innocent civilians. israel defense minister said it is prepared to attack syria militarily if it appears those chemical weapons could fall in the hands of hezbollah. the united states say it's monitoring very closely what exactly the regime is doing with those chemical weapons. it comes just as the rebels have made a sweeping campaign through the capital of damascus in the past week with astonishing cou7 against the regime wiping out the top security officials of president assad on wednesday and following up with raids on border posts east and west side of countries. very reminiscent what happened in the libya and m qua qua got in the middle of it. so concerns how stable that regime really is. how much longer it can hang on for. there are reports that assad's wife and three children have fled to russia speculation that if highs regime falls he could actually seek exile there. begin the pace of fighting we have seen in the past 24 hours, 550 casualties in the pa

it is unclear if president assad was there. the government isn't saying. >> it is part of the conflict. assad has not been seen publicly since this interview with german television two weeks ago. the opposition says it planted the bomb with inside help. >> the army can reach anyone inside damascus. even bashar assad himself, he is not safe anymore. >> reporter: after 17 months of fighting, syrian rebels have carved out rural safe havens. brought the fight to damascus and now brought it to assad's inner circle. the defense secretary leon panetta called today's attack a real escalation. >> this is a situation that is rapidly spinning out of control. >> reporter: already in rebel provinces in syria, they're celebrating hoping today's bombing is a sign that assad's days in power are numbered, as u.s. officials renew their calls for the syrian president to immediately step down. in addition to disrupting the leadership, you could imagine the psychological impact of an attack like this. bashar al assad doesn't know who he can trust.

pressure is mounting on president bashar al-assad. for the first time, the syrian government has indirectly raised the question of using chemical weapons inside syrian borders. >> these weapons that they possession of -- possess are monitored and guarded by the syrian army. these weapons are meant to be used only and strictly in the event of external aggression against syria. >> syria has held stocks of chemical weapons since the early 1980's. the veiled threat to use them comes after the assad regime rejected an arab league offer of safe passage if the leader gives up power. >> first, we ask the regime to step down, but we did not set any time frame. the arab league pledges to provide a sawed and his family with safe exit to stop the bloodshed in syria. the faster we act, the better. >> with continuing pressure from both the international community and rebel groups, some fear that president assad might resort to using nonconventional weapons in a last-ditch effort to stay in power. >> that international pressure includes new efforts

came out there were pictures of assad perfectly fine having not been injured also reports of assad's wife coming here to moscow and about those rumors the foreign ministry here in russia has said on the general idea of rumors that the world is usually awash with rumors these rumors tend to game some information around and spread very fast i would not like to comment on any rumors today i think that it is a very honest information trap and that we should be careful not to fall into it so basically a lot of information out there lots of misinformation out there and telling people to be careful what they believe. sean thomas reporting there from central moscow well more news and videos are available for you right now any time you like dot com and here are some of the stories that are waiting for you at the moment the war between u.s. officials and whistleblowers intensifies as defense secretary leon panetta tightens the screws on american media all the details of that plus. more than a third of children living near japan's crippled nuclear power plant could suffer from cancer in the fut

opposition members called on all dissident groups to come together to bring down assad. representatives at a u.n.-backed conference in geneva agreed on a call for a transition to democratic government. they said such an administration would include members of the assad government and the opposition. russian representatives blocked a clause that would have called for the president to step down. >> translator: we are disappointed with the agreement reached at the geneva conference. >> he said members of his group want to give top priority to bringing down assad. u.s. officials have come out with their interpretation of the agreement. they say assad will not be among syria's next group of leaders. >> we are confident if this and when this transitional governing body is formed up along the lines of this document that he's not going to be part of it. >> even if assad refused to leave, he would essentially be stripped of power. she said the transitional governing body will be responsible for running the country. >>> the head of nato says the international community has a duty

they lose in this when assad goes. >> yes, yes that's true. and they increasingly look like the losers in the broader arab spring. you see the region solidifying in way that's less and less hospitable to iran, do agree. >> if -- becomes one of the places of minority government. >> rose: sunni government and the shiite. >> one of the interesting questions is how this effect the nuclear program. imagine for a second that syria falls, there's a strategic set back for iran. how does that affect the iranian calculus on the nuclear program and do they look at the nuclear program and maybe not so suddenly as a way if you will of a strategic compensation that this is a way to somehow come back a little bit. >> rose: or do you say accelerate the program because it's the only thing you have. >> to make up for the strategic set back they may well have experienced in syria. i wouldn't rule that out that that becomes a prelude to something that brings the iranian issue even to the fore. >> rose: so who wins in syria? how do we assess who is coming to power

damascus has largely supported the assad regime. uade the population to turn it's spreading ll t th citizens s anyone could be an enemy. the internatio >>> egypt's new president has time. this cops as world leader's policies on reg mohamed morsi hosted mahmoud their first s s tions with the united >> translator: pre will pay more attention to the pressing needs of palestinians and lend a mediating future peace talks their country was em embroiled air nationa leading against an islamist party. members of libya's election tropical storm commission announced the first results al proportionate d construction party this ections held in the wake of ew libyan government must win candidat ion or parliament during his time in power. putting a constitution in place is the newly elected parliament's first priority. lawmakers must also prime minister. for democracy in the ople and wou airpor bulgaria on wednesday afternoon. bulgarian state television says the blast struck after the e arrival israelis. the government has prove are investigating

it's only in the sense that they also oppose the assad regime. but i don't believe that al- qaeda is going to take over opposed assad syria. i think it's going to however play a role as a third party and one that serves our short term interests of -- that shares our interests in terms of bringing down the assad regime but certainly not our long term interests in any way, and i think it's very important we are cautious about working with groups in syria, making sure they are not involved with al- qaeda or their affiliates. host: to be clear, the photograph we showed, one of those rebel groups from "the new york times", a section of the "new york times". but this is from joy, who says syria took in so many war refugees from iraq and now they are smack dab in the middle of a civil war. are they moving back to iraq. guest: yes they are, and some of them are moving back to iraq and that's just unfortunately, you know -- a lot of iraqis have suffered in the process and we'll have to wait and see what their choices are here going forward. it also depend

the draft would have permitted nonmilitary sanctions if president assad's government stopped using heavy artillery in ten days and called for a 45-day extension of the u.n. cease-fire observer's mission. it's the third time russia and china have vetoed u.n. resolutions on syria. >> the security council has failed utterly. this is another dark day in turtle bay. one can only hope that one day, before too many thousands more die, that russia and china will stop protecting assad and allow -- >> western nations are expected to try to draft another resolution to extend the mission of the u.n. cease-fire observers. the failure of the original resolution isn't a surprise. russian and chinese leaders made it clear they didn't like the draft. still, top united nations officials tried to change their minds in the days leading up to the vote. they've since gone from hopeful to critical. >>> the u.n. secretary-general expressed regret, arguing that other nations have a collective responsibility to the people of syria and that the u.n. will continue to try to end the violence there. special envoy kof

and western powers are so dedicated to out the assad regime here. well you know it's interesting it was it was eleven months ago to the day from yesterday it was august eighteenth when u.s. president barack obama first said assad must go so this is not anything new western powers have been increasing their rhetoric and their pressure on the assad government many experts and analysts have their own you know their own opinions as to why but the russian ambassador to the united nations batali churkin today said frankly that you know this political pressure is not just about humanitarian reasons he believes the western countries are also trying to remove the assad government from power and move its way into iran to possibly destabilize iran to possibly have more influence in that area because syria and iran you know are our allies more you know more aligned those countries and they stand up and argue against western powers so if they if you remove one of the two key players then you know the battleground becomes that much more beneficial to those that a

>> rose: we would take assad, bashar assad if he wants to come to moscow bashar al assad. >> >> rose: let me suggest another reason. you just don't want to be identified with him in that way. >> because we are not supposed to be identified with him. he is not our nephew, you know. it is a power structure which was created by the french. he has had many more contacts with the west than with russia. yes he has some contacts with russia, with syria like with a number of other arab countries, where we have had close relationship over the years, but why should he or his regime be described as something which was almost sort of created and nurtured by the russian federation? it is not the case. >> rose: so -- >> he is not related to us. and we are not attached to his regime in any particular way. we have been repeatedly saying if he were to decide to step down that will be fine with us. or the syrian people in the process of die hog were to decide the only way to resolve the crisis is his departure, that will be fine with us. >> what happens if -- how would you feel if the same thing happen