WorldUNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia said on Monday it was talking to the United States about the U.N. Security Council renewing an international inquiry into chemical weapons attacks in Syria, but Washington countered that Moscow had refused to engage on a U.S.-drafted resolution. The mandate for the joint inquiry by the U.N. and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), which has found the Syrian government used the banned nerve agent sarin in an April 4 attack, expires on Friday. The Syrian government has denied using chemical weapons. A resolution needs nine votes in favor and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, Britain and France to pass. Syria agreed to destroy its chemical weapons in 2013 under a deal brokered by Russia and the United States.

Source: Sunday Times November 14, 2017 09:22 UTC