Grim fate awaits Assad if no reforms - Medvedev to RT

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Assad, that he needs to carry out reforms and talk to the opposition – and that if both sides cannot find common ground, a sad future awaits Syrians.

“In the letters I sent to the president of Syria and in my private conversation with him, I discuss the same ideas: reforms need to be carried out, he should establish peace with the opposition, establish peace in the country and create a modern state,” Medvedev said.“If he can't do that,” Medvedev continued, “then a sad future awaits him, and at the end of the day we'll have to make our decision. Unfortunately, a lot of people are dying in Syria. This is a huge concern. We're watching the situation. It is changing, and so are our guidelines.”

The Russian president gave an interview to RT, Echo Moskvy radio station and First Caucasus Television on the eve of the third anniversary of the Ossetian war.Speaking about those events in the Caucasus, Medvedev said Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili should be brought before an international court for starting the war in 2008.