France accused on Friday Russia of hindering international chemical weapons inspectors from reaching the Syrian town of Douma, the site of regime chemical weapons attack.
Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said the obstruction is likely aimed at ensuring that proof of the attack disappears.
Experts from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) arrived in Damascus last weekend to examine the site of the suspected attack in nearby Douma, which killed dozens of people and led to US-led missile strikes.
The OPCW must have full, immediate and unimpeded access to the site, Le Drian demanded in a written statement.
“At this time, inspectors from the OPCW still don’t have access to the site of the gas attack in Douma,” he said.
The inspectors’ mission has been put on hold after a United Nations security assessment team were fired at, and officials at the OPCW have said that Russian and Syrian forces have likely removed key evidence.
"If Russia and Syria ultimately abide by their commitments, it will take (the investigators) at least two weeks," Le Drian said.
"The OPCW mission has as its goal establishing whether a chemical attack indeed took place and identifying the nature of the chemical agent used. This obstruction will obviously harm the quality of the investigation," he added.
"It seems likely that this attitude is intended to make proof and material evidence linked to the chemical attack disappear."
France joined the United States and Britain in launching air strikes a week ago against the regime of Bashar al-Assad, in retaliation against the Douma attack which local medics said killed at least 40 people.
Le Drian said Russia was issuing "contradictory official statements on the chemical attack".
"One day the attack didn't take place, the next, it was carried out by armed groups," he said.
"A day later, it's a Western manipulation. There's no concern for either coherence or truth when it comes to sowing doubt and confusion."
He reiterated France's assertion that it has conclusive evidence of a chemical attack in Douma on April 7 as well as proof that it was carried out by the regime.
