During a recent interview by the Turkish press, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad reportedly claimed that he would resign from his post if doing so could end the political crisis in Syria. But this statement has not only been denied by the Syrian government, which stated that it was a misinterpretation of Assad's words, but is also highly unlikely from a pragmatic perspective.
Assad's fate can only be decided by the Syrian people through the ballot box. If the Syrian public can be given a chance to vote and if the result indicates that Assad has to leave, he might resign. But before this happens, Assad will not quit, no matter how much pressure the Western countries place on him.
The regime, consisting mostly of Alawite elites and other factions like the Shiites, won't abandon Assad either. The possibility was raised when the Geneva plan, brokered by the UN and agreed by world powers to solve the Syrian crisis by peaceful political means, drew objection from the Syrian opposition as they do not want to cooperate with an Assad-led regime.
Giving the mounting pressure from both inside and outside Syria, some have speculated that the regime may be forced to remove Assad in order to make a political solution possible. However, there is currently no credible replacement within the regime, and no one is willing to shoulder the blame.
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