Vladimir Putin: Russia and US to draft Syria peace plan

Russia and the US will be responsible for drafting the "underlying principles" of a settlement to help end the Syrian crisis, the Russian president has confirmed.

Speaking at the end of the two-day summit in Northern Ireland, Vladimir Putin said some G8 members had agreed with the Russian position, that there was no proof that the ruling Assad regime had used chemical weapons, but that there were cases of opposition forces being caught with them.

The Russian president said that all evidence would be presented to the UN Security Council with Russia, as a permanent member, "actively assessing the situation".