MOSCOW (Reuters) - Demands for Syria's President Bashar al-Assad to step down restrict perspectives for political settlement in this country, Russia's RIA news agency on Monday quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying.

Moscow proposes to put off discussions about Assad's fate, Ryabkov said, adding the issue should be decided later by the sides involved in the Syrian conflict.

(Reporting by Maria Kiselyova; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov)