Russian President Vladimir Putin has not ruled out granting political asylum to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-time ally.
When asked by a German magazine if he would shelter Mr Assad, he said it was premature to discuss the issue.
But he added that Russia had granted asylum to US whistleblower Edward Snowden, "which was far more difficult than to do the same for Mr Assad.
Mr Putin said Syria first needed political reform.
He said the aim in Syria would be to work towards a new constitution: "It is a complicated process.
Mr Putin said he did not want to see a scenario like that in Libya or Iraq to be repeated in Syria.
"In my view, no effort should be spared in strengthening legitimate governments in the region's countries," he said. "That also applies to Syria."
Mr Putin spoke in the second half of an interview with German newspaper Bild, which was published in English by the Kremlin on 12 January.
The first part of the interview was published on 11 January.
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