Diplomats: Russia open to Assad's ouster after Syria transition
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UNITED NATIONS - Russia has made clear to Western nations that it has no objection to Syrian President Bashar Assad stepping down as part of a peace process, in a softening of its publicly stated staunch backing of Assad ahead of talks in New York, diplomats said.
"What you've got is a move that will end up with Assad going," a senior Western diplomat said on condition of anonymity.
"And the Russians have got to the point privately where they accept that Assad will have gone by the end of this transition, they're just not prepared to say that publicly," he added.
Several other Western officials confirmed the diplomat's remarks.
