Russia must stop backing Assad: France

French President François Hollande says Moscow must stop supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad as the West rejects a Russian-drafted UN resolution aimed at halting Turkey's military actions in northern Syria.

“Russia will not succeed by unilaterally backing Bashar al-Assad. It's not possible, we all see it. Because there will be no results on the ground, there won't be negotiations and there will always be war,” Hollande told France Inter radio on Friday.

He added that "there must be pressure on Moscow” so that it helps resume Syria peace talks.

The latest round of talks between the Syrian government and the Saudi-backed opposition -- known as the High Negotiations Committee (HNC) -- which was being held in the Swiss city of Geneva, was suspended on February 3 after the opposition refused to attend the sessions. The next round was slated for February 25; however, UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura said on Friday that the resumption of the talks on the planned date is not realistic.

ME