Russia says no proof Assad was behind chemical attack

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) and his French counterpart Laurent Fabius attend a news conference in Moscow, September 17, 2013. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia and France sharply disagreed on Tuesday over a report by U.N. investigators into a chemical weapons attack that killed hundreds of people in Syria, underscoring the difficulties in reaching agreement on action at the U.N. Security Council.

Sitting beside French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius at a news conference in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the report had produced no proof that President Bashar al-Assad's troops carried out the August 21 attack and that Russia still suspected rebel forces were behind it.