Russia’s President Vladimir Putin called Thursday for a broad worldwide front against terrorism and accused Turkey of trading oil with the Islamic State group.
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Minutes after Putin had finished speaking, his energy minister, Alexander Novak, said Russian Federation was halting talks with Ankara on the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, a symbolic move created to emphasize the strength of Kremlin anger.
Earlier in the week, Russian Federation accused Turkey of shooting down the jet in order to protect its oil interests with the IS – also identified as Daesh, ISIS and ISIL.
“According to our data, the political leadership of the country [Turkey], including President Erdogan and his family, is involved in this criminal business, ” Antonov told the journalists in Moscow.
“What a fantastic family business”, he said, claiming that “terrorists” in Syria make some $2 billion (1.9 billion euros) each year out of the illegal oil trade.
“Emotions are running high (in Turkey and Russia), but my president (Nazarbayev), knowing Mr Putin very well personally and knowing his great potential to be constructive and knowing personally President (Tayyip) Erdogan, believes and hopes they will think strategically in this very hard situation”, Idrissov said.
Though a key gateway for Islamic State oil smuggling is in the southern corridor of Turkey, Erdoğan has sidestepped any concrete efforts to attack the sales route. “Turkish leaders won’t step down and they won’t acknowledge anything even if their faces are smeared with the stolen oil”.
Erdogan vehemently rejected the claim, calling it slanderous and saying he would resign as president if the allegation could be proven.
The defence ministry cited satellite images that it said showed oil tankers travelling from IS-held territory to Turkey.
Moscow’s allegations come amid heightening tensions between the two countries after Turkish forces shot down a Russian warplane on November 24.
“And most importantly, it does not plan to stop them”, Sergei Rudskoy, deputy head of the Russian military’s General Staff, told reporters.
“The income of this terrorist organization was about $3 million per day”.
Russian Federation has already banned some Turkish food imports, including selected fruit and vegetables, as part of a wider retaliatory sanctions package. Their strong language reflects their president’s conviction that Turkey has “stabbed Russian Federation in the back”.
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U.S. officials say coalition air strikes have destroyed hundreds of IS oil trucks while the Russian campaign has mainly targeted opponents of the Syrian government who are not from Islamic State, which is also known as Isil.
