Putin alleged that Russian warplanes had been launching an operation against Daesh north of Latakia. But Russia’s President Vladimir Putin accused Ankara of shooting it down over Syria, where Russian Federation has been conducting raids on the Syrian opposition and jihadi groups.
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Putin said the Russian Su-24 jet was shot by a missile from a Turkish jet over Syria about 1 kilometer (just over a half-mile) away from the Turkish border, which he described as a “stab in the back by the terrorists’ accomplices”. It’s been Turkey’s cool approach that has prevented similar incidents up to now, he said. “They are ostensibly striking against Daesh but they are hitting Syrian Turkmen and Syrian Turkmen are trying to defend their land”.
He added that rebels shot one of the pilots, who landed dead on the ground. He stressed that the action did not amount to an aggression against any foreign territory.
Video footage of the incident showed a war plane on fire before crashing on a hill and two crew members apparently parachuting safely.
“We condemn the attacks on our brethren Bayirbuck Turkmen”, he said.
A Turkish military statement said the plane entered Turkish airspace over the town of Yayladagi, in Hatay province.
“Despite being warned 10 times in five minutes because it was coming towards our border, it insisted on continuing its violation”.
He explained that Turkish F-16 jets “intercepted an unidentified warplane according to globally acknowledged rules of engagement”.
Erdogan approved a Cabinet list presented by Davutoglu on Tuesday, hours after Turkey shot down a Russian plane it said violated its airspace and ignored repeated warnings. Russian Federation denies the plane crossed into Turkish skies. Both pilots managed to eject.
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With a major diplomatic crisis looming between two states on opposing sides in the Syria conflict, Turkey has summoned the Russian envoy to Ankara over the incident which Russia condemned. The fighter, who was identified as Alpaslan Celik, the second-in-command of the Turkmen Coastal Division, said the Turkmen forces had re-captured a Turkmen mountain region from Syrian forces. Only Syrian Turkmen who are our relatives are living in that region.
