Russia's Putin warns against attacks on Iran, Syria

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In an article on foreign policy for publication on Monday, six days before a March 4 presidential election he is almost certain to win, Putin also warned Western and Arab nations against military intervention in Syria.

"I very much hope the United States and other countries ... do not try to set a military scenario in motion in Syria without sanction from the U.N. Security Council," Putin said, according to a transcript.

On Iran, he said that "the growing threat of a military strike on this country alarms Russia, no doubt. If this occurs, the consequences will be truly catastrophic. It is impossible to imagine their real scale."

(Writing by Steve Gutterman Editing by Maria Golovnina)

World.