West Urges Putin to Review Russia's Syrian Policy

The European Union on Monday urged more international action on getting humanitarian aid into Syria and called for Russia to recognize the need for new Syrian leadership, as Paris urged Vladimir Putin to mark his return to the Russian presidency by dropping Moscow's support for the Syrian regime.

"We need to see some action on Syria from the international community in order to get humanitarian aid that's so desperately needed into Homs right now," EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told reporters in Prague.

"We need to see Russia participate in helping us to achieve that, and to recognize that there needs to be a new leadership in Syria," she said.

"It's critical to have the (United Nations) Security Council act on the tragedy that's unfolding in Syria," Ashton added.

Russia has so far refused to condemn Syria, its Soviet-era ally, after nearly a year of violence that the opposition says has claimed more than 7,600 lives.

Moscow along with Beijing has twice wielded a Security Council veto to block U.N. action on the crisis in Syria, first in October last year and again in February.

On Monday, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met his Jordanian counterpart and said he would meet counterparts from the Arab League states to discuss the Syria crisis on March 10.

Ashton said Monday she saw these two meetings as an opportunity for newly elected Russian president Vladimir Putin "to be able to push forward on Syria in a collegial way with the rest of the international community."

Meanwhile Syria's embattled President Bashar al-Assad on Monday congratulated Putin for winning the Russian presidential election, the Syrian state news agency reported.

"President Bashar al-Assad has sent a telegram to Russian premier Vladimir Putin for his victory in the presidential election," SANA said.

Russia is a staunch ally of the Assad regime which has been battling a year-long uprising that has left more than 7,500 people dead according to the United Nations.

Also on Monday, France urged Vladimir Putin on Monday to mark his return to the Russian presidency by dropping Moscow's support for Bashar al-Assad's regime and backing international pressure on Syria.

"Russia has totally isolated itself from the rest of the international community," French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe warned, urging Putin "now the elections have passed... to revisit Russia's Syria policy."

"If we could quickly get a (U.N.) Security Council resolution that orders Damascus to halt the violence, allow access for humanitarian aid and put the Arab League peace plan into effect, that would be real progress," he said.

"It's not impossible, we're going to work on it in the coming days."

Putin led Russia between 2000 and 2008 and has since been prime minister under his protege President Dmitry Medvedev, remaining the true power in the Kremlin in the eyes of most analysts. On Sunday he was re-elected president.