Putin, Rouhani agree chemical weapon use 'impermissible':

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani have agreed that chemical weapon use is "impermissible" but oppose intervention in their ally Syria, the Kremlin said after the two held telephone talks.

"Both sides consider that the use of chemical weapons by anyone is impermissible," said a statement posted on the Kremlin website late yesterday.

"Considering the calls for outside military intervention in the Syrian conflict, they have also highlighted the need to seek ways to settle (the conflict) solely through political-diplomatic means," it said.

The two presidents discussed the Syrian conflict "at the initiative of the Iranian side," it said.

Iran, the chief regional ally of President Bashar al-Assad's regime, has spoken out against Western military intervention in Syria after suspected chemical weapons attacks on the outskirts of Damascus last week.

Russia has supported the Damascus regime throughout the two-and-a-half-year conflict by vetoing UN Security Council resolutions aiming to increase pressure on Assad and is widely expected to do so again.