Jean-Marc Ayrault

Germany on April 28 urged fellow EU nations not to end membership talks with Turkey because the country is key to European interests.

Austria has led calls for the negotiations to be ditched, saying President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has violated the basic EU rule of law and democratic norms candidate countries must put in place.

Samples obtained by French intelligence show that forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "undoubtedly" used sarin nerve gas in an April 4 attack in northern Syria, France's foreign minister said on Wednesday, citing a declassified report, Reuters.

Western countries that met in Italy for a Group of Seven meeting said April 11 that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had no place in the country's future, while Russia hit back by claiming that U.S. was planning fake chemical attacks in Syria. 

Countries across the world and international organizations have reacted to a suspected gas attack in Syria that killed some 58 people, including 11 children, amid calls for international action. 

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte easily defeated a strong challenge by far-right rival Geert Wilders in key elections seen as a bellwether of populist support in Europe, partial vote counts said on March 15.

The attack at the Louvre is a terrorist act, stated French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault.

Paris Prosecutor's Office is already leading an investigation.

A French soldier opened fire after a man tried to enter the Louvre in Paris with suspicious luggage.

The area around the museum has been cut off.

Iran on Tuesday warned the United States against "creating new tensions" over its ballistic missile tests as Washington called for urgent talks at the UN Security Council on the issue.

Major powers signaled to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump that a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians is the only solution to the problems in the Holy Land, with France warning him that plans to move the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem could derail peace efforts. 

As the Security Council held emergency talks on the fighting in New York, Syria's opposition urged the U.N. to take immediate steps to protect civilians.

A government offensive to retake all of Aleppo has pounded the city in recent days, with shelling of an opposition-controlled area reported to have killed at least 26 civilians.

No breakthrough has been reached at the meeting in Minsk attended by the Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia.
The countries from the Normandy Four discussed the withdrawal of armed formations from the front line in Eastern Ukraine and the exchange of prisoners of war.