Syria's vice president has said a "historic settlement", involving the formation of a national unity government, was needed to end the 21-month conflict in the country, Al Jazeera reported.
Farouq al-Sharaa told a Lebanese newspaper that neither the forces of President Bashar al-Assad nor opposition fighters were able to win the war in Syria.
Sharaa said the situation in the country was heading from bad to worse, al-Akhbar newspaper cited him as saying in its Monday edition.
Sharaa, a Sunni Muslim figure in the minority Alawite-led regime, has served in top posts for almost 30 years.
The latest development came as Iran, Syria's main ally, said it was backing presidential elections in the war-torn country as part of a six-point plan outlined on Sunday to halt the violence.
The plan, described by state media and Iranian news agencies, also calls for efforts to halt the flow of weapons into Syria and to hold talks that include the government of President Assad.
Iran in the past has offered initiatives to end the Syrian bloodshed, but none are likely to gain any momentum with the main rebel forces who suspect Tehran for its close ties to Assad regime.
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