MOSCOW - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Kremlin wanted Syria to prepare for parliamentary and presidential elections, as Moscow intensified its drive to convert its increased clout with Damascus into a political settlement.

In comments which mark a shift in Russia's position, he also said that Russia's airforce, which has been bombing Islamist militants in Syria since Sept. 30, would be ready to help Western-backed Free Syrian Army rebels, if it knew where they were.

The Kremlin, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's strongest foreign ally, has spoken broadly about the need for elections in Syria before. But Lavrov's comments were its most specific call for political renewal yet and came just days after a surprise visit by Assad to Moscow.

"External players can not decide anything for the Syrians. We must force them to come up with a plan for their country where the interests of every religious, ethnic and political group will be well protected," Lavrov told Russian state TV in an interview broadcast on Saturday.

 "They need to prepare for both parliamentary and presidential elections."

Lavrov on Saturday phoned U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to discuss organizing talks between the Syrian government and opposition, the Russian foreign ministry said. It said the two men had spoken of the need to tap the potential of other countries in the region to push the political process forward.

The U.S. state department declined to comment, pointing to what Kerry had said about Syria in Vienna on Friday when he struck an upbeat note about the possibility of cooperating with Russia to find a political solution even as he acknowledged that the basic disagreement on Assad’s future remained.(Reuters)