The Russian foreign ministry says a draft French UN Security Council resolution on Syria would have helped "terrorists" in the Aleppo area by protecting them from aerial bombing.

In a statement published on Sunday, as Syrian government forces pressed on with their offensive against rebel fighters in the city, the Russians said the French text was "politicised and one-sided".

"An explicit attempt was made, by banning flights in the Aleppo area, to provide cover for the terrorists of Jabhat al-Nusra and associated militants," the ministry said.
Western powers and Russia clash at UN over Syria

But it also emphasised that Russia is "ready to keep searching for a long-term Syria solution, despite its differences with the West".

The UN Security Council voted on Saturday on two rival resolutions on the fighting - one drafted by France calling for an end to air strikes and a second by Russia that urged a ceasefire but made no mention of halting the bombings.

Russia's text was effectively the French draft with Russian amendments.

It removed the demand for an end to air strikes on Aleppo and put the focus back on a failed US - Russia ceasefire deal, which was annexed to the draft.

Russia vetoed the French-drafted resolution while the Russian draft failed to gather enough votes to pass.