Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a live broadcast nationwide phone-in in Moscow April 25, 2013. REUTERS/Alexei Nikolsky/Ria Novosti/Pool
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad could have avoided civil war by responding more quickly to demands for political change, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.
In comments to Russia's English-language state television network RT, Putin repeated that Russia is not acting as an advocate for Assad and blamed the West for violent upheaval in the Middle East.
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