Russia’s defence ministry said on Wednesday it had proof that Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan and his family were benefiting from the illegal smuggling of oil from Islamic State-held territory in Syria and Iraq. “Top-level state leadership – President Erdogan and his family – is involved in this criminal business”, Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said during a press briefing, the news website Gazeta.ru reported.
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Erdogan’s remarks came after Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Turkey of buying oil from Daesh.
“What a fantastic family business”, he said, claiming that “terrorists” in Syria made some $2 billion (1.9 billion euros) each year out of the illegal oil trade. Then, in Paris this week, he increased the rhetoric: “We have every reason to believe that the decision to shoot down our aircraft was dictated by the desire to ensure the safety of supply routes of oil to Turkey, to the ports where they are shipped in tankers”.
Mr Obama said that talks in Vienna among global diplomats, including Russian Federation, to enact a ceasefire in Syria are “moving forward steadily”.
Moscow and Ankara have been at loggerheads over the November 24 incident when Turkish jets shot down a Russian warplane – which Turkey claims illegally crossed into Turkish airspace.
Turkey insists the Russian plane violated its airspace despite numerous warnings it issued to the Russian pilots and has said it won’t apologize for the downing, which killed a Russian pilot.
Mr. Obama urged Mr. Erdogan in a meeting Tuesday to do a better job of sealing its border with Syria to stop the Islamic State’s illegal oil trade.
Oil from IS-controlled areas in Syria is shipped to refineries in third countries after being transported to Turkey, the head of the Russian General Staff’s operative command said Wednesday.
However, he says, Russian Federation presented no evidence that Erdogan and his family were involved in such trade.
Last month Russian Federation carried out its first successful tests on a fearsome new anti-satellite missile created to wipe out USA space supremacy in the event of war. “History will prove that Turkey is fighting against Syria with the help of some countries and extremist organizations in this region”, Shaaban said.
“Financial flows from resale of oil products are aimed not only at making the top military and political leaders of Turkey richer”.
Anatov’s accusation comes soon after Putin’s own claim that Turkey is cooperating with ISIS.
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Even as Moscow released its latest salvo of allegations, Lavrov agreed to meet his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu at a conference in Belgrade later this week for the first time since the downing.
