The White House on Monday again condemned the violence in Syria and called upon the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to start a dialogue or resign, dpa reported.
"The president has made clear that President Assad needs to engage in political dialogue, that the transition there needs to take place towards more political freedom, and that if President Assad does not lead that transition then he should step aside," said White House spokesman Jay Carney.
Carney talked to reporters en route with President Barack Obama to North Carolina.
Human rights groups have said that at least 1,300 people have been killed and more than 10,000 detained since the protests calling for the ouster of al-Assad started in March.
Asked why the international community does not intervene as it has in Libya, Carney noted that the Libya deployments were authorized by the United Nations.