"France wants to maintain a resolution in the Security Council on what has happened… France is seeking to talk with its partners on the Security Council, especially the permanent members, and Russia in particular," Ayrault told the CNews television.
Ayrault pointed out that Paris was determined to facilitate the establishment of peace in Syria through ceasing violence and holding talks, and added that the combat against terrorists remained one of the urgent needs.
"The goal of France is always the same — to stop the hostilities, to stop the fighting and [conduct] negotiations… There are two emergencies now in Syria — to continue fight against Daesh [Islamic State, banned in Russia], as we do in Iraq… and to resume negotiations process in Geneva," Ayrault said.
The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on Wednesday to discuss the suspected chemical attack in Idlib. The United Kingdom, France and the United States introduced a draft resolution claiming that the alleged attack was carried out by the Syrian army. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Moscow categorically rejected the draft resolution.
Following a chemical weapon attack in Syria's East Ghouta in 2013, Syria joined the Convention on the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. This was the result of an agreement between Russia and the United States on the destruction of chemical weapons in the country under the control of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and it prevented the US military intervention in Syria. In January 2016, the OPCW said all chemical weapons in Syria had been destroyed.
However, in June 2016, the US State Department released a report stating that Syria continued to use chemical substances against citizens, and could also stockpile chemical weapons. UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Kim Won-soo said that the UN and OPCW experts still could not confirm the complete destruction of chemical weapons production facilities in Syria.
