On Western propaganda blaming Assad for the civil war
Assad accused Western propaganda of oversimplifying the Syrian crisis and reporting that “the whole problem in Syria lies in one individual.” He added the consequence of that rhetoric is for people to say “let that individual go and things will be alright.”
He also said the West will continue to support terrorism as long as he is in power “because the Western principle followed now in Syria and Russia and other countries is changing presidents, changing states, or what they call bringing regimes down. Why? Because they do not accept partners and do not accept independent states.”
He said that in Syria, the president comes into power through the people and through elections – and if he goes, he goes through the people. He stressed that a leader doesn’t go “as a result of an American decision, a Security Council decision, the Geneva conference, or the Geneva communiqué.”
“If the people want [a leader] to stay, he should stay; and if the people reject him, he should leave immediately. This is the principle according to which I look at this issue.”
