France in fresh diplomatic push to end fighting in Syria's Aleppo

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said that he will head for New York on Saturday to defend a draft resolution presented by his country and Spain to end fighting in Syria's Aleppo city, the French Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The UN Security Council will vote on Saturday on a draft resolution that demands an immediate end to air strikes and military flights over Syria's Aleppo city, but the measure appears doomed to be vetoed by Russia.

The 15-member council has been negotiating for a week on the text drafted by France and Spain. The vote was called after the French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault visited Moscow on Thursday and Washington on Friday to discuss the resolution.

"This is not a draft which is right for adoption, I have this suspicion that the real motive is to cause a Russian veto," said Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin on Friday. "I cannot possibly see how we can let this resolution pass."

A resolution needs nine votes in favor and no vetoes to be adopted.

Ayrault said that he planned to go to New York for the vote and told reporters in Washington: "I still have hope that the resolution will pass and that it can be implemented."

The draft urges an immediate cessation of hostilities and safe and unhindered humanitarian aid access in Syria. It "demands that all parties immediately end all aerial bombardments of and military flights over Aleppo city."

It also asks UN chief Ban Ki-moon to propose options for a UN-supervised monitoring of a truce and threatens to "take further measures" in the event of non-compliance by "any party to the Syrian domestic conflict."

Source: MENA