French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday urged his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to urgently shed light on the "attempted murder" of opposition figure Alexei Navalny, after French tests confirmed the use of the Novichok nerve agent, the Elysee said.

Macron told Putin in telephone talks that it is "imperative that all light be shed, without delay, on the circumstances of this attempted murder and who is responsible," the French presidency said in a statement.

He also informed Putin that France's own analysis had confirmed Germany's conclusion that Navalny was poisoned by Novichok "in contravention of international norms on using chemical weapons.