ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (Reuters) ? The White House said on Tuesday that Turkish criticism of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had deepened the isolation of his regime, and reiterated that he had lost legitimacy and should step down.
"We very much welcome the strong stance that Turkey has taken and believe it sends a critical message to President Assad that he cannot crack down and oppress the aspirations of his people," White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes told reporters traveling with President Barack Obama.
"Frankly, we think it reinforces the fact that he should step down, because that is in the best interests of the Syrian people," Rhodes told reporters as Obama flew toward Australia on an Asian tour.
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said earlier on Tuesday that Syria's leaders had missed a "last opportunity" to avoid sanctions by stopping a violent crackdown on protesters seeking an end to Assad's rule.
Washington has repeatedly called for Assad to leave power following a violent crackdown against anti-government protesters, in which the United Nations estimate over 3,500 people have died since demonstrations erupted in March.
The United States has sought to work with allies and partners in the Arab world to push Assad out, and believes this strategy is working.
"We see a growing tide of international opinion against President Assad. We welcome that and have sought to build upon that to apply pressure on the Assad regime," Rhodes said.
(Reporting by Laura MacInnis, editing by Eric Beech)
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