A UN Security Council meeting that was supposed to condemn the reported use of chlorine gas by the Assad government in Syria has failed to agree on a statement.

The US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, has accused Russia of shielding the Syrian government for its alleged use of chemical weapons.

But her Russian counterpart, Vassily Nebenzia, accused Haley of "artificially heating up" the chemical weapons issue.

Al Jazeera's James Bays reports from the United Nations.