Vladimir Putin has claimed Bashar al-Assad is ready to hold snap parliamentary elections and share power with “healthy” opposition, as the civil war in Syria continues.

Russia has been among Mr Assad’s staunchest allies during the four-and-a-half year civil war that has decimated Syria and created more than four million refugees.

Among those who fled was Aylan Kurdi, three, whose body was photographed on the shores of Turkey on Wednesday. The image has provoked a storm of criticism around the treatment of refugees, the majority of whom now come from Syria.

Mr Putin has argued removing the Syrian dictator would further destabilise the region as well as open the door for Isis to make significant land gains.

"We really want to create some kind of an international coalition to fight terrorism and extremism," the Russian leader told journalists on Friday at the Eastern Economic Forum.

He said Moscow was working with its Syrian “partners” on the understanding that fighting terrorism should be pursued alongside a “political process” in Syria.

10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Show all 10 1 /10 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Damascus, Syria Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Kiev, Ukraine Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Tripoli, Libya Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Tunis, Tunisia Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Athens, Greece Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Detroit, USA DETROIT, MI - MARCH 23: A view of downtown Detroit s shown March 23, 2011 in Detroit, Michigan. The new census figures show that Detroit has lost 25 percent of its population in the last ten years, bringing the city's population down to its lowest since 1910. (Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images) Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Moscow, Russia Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Cairo, Egypt Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world Bahrain, Bahrain Getty 10 cities rapidly becoming the worst to live in the world St Petersburg, Russia Getty

"And the Syrian president agrees with that, all the way down to holding early elections, let's say, parliamentary ones, establishing contacts with the so-called healthy opposition, bringing them into governing," he said.

However, Mr Putin’s views are not supported by the west or many of Mr Assad’s neighbours, who view the dictator as part of the problem. Mr Assad’s war on his own people is believed to have resulted in the death of a quarter of a million people.