The action had been “successful”.
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Russia’s president Vladimir Putin says the downing of a Russian warplane near the Syrian border is a “stab in the back carried out by the accomplices of terrorists”.
Simultaneously, Russia’s defense ministry announced it would be deploying advanced anti-aircraft missile systems to Syria, close to where the incident happened to prevent further attacks of its planes conducting strikes there.
Opposition groups in Syria also shot a Russian helicopter as it took part in the search for the two pilots near the Turkish-Syrian border.
In his debriefing, according to Russia’s Ambassador in France, he apparently testified that his co-pilot was shot on the air and then killed on the ground.
A statement from the Syrian armed forces said a special unit carried out overnight a “qualitative” operation with Russian forces and rescued one of the two pilots.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov cancelled his scheduled visit to Turkey in the wake of the shooting down of the Russian warplane.
“This was a serious incident and we don’t want it to derail progress made in building a common front against Islamic State”, said the diplomat, who asked not to be named. Both of the pilots managed to eject and the plane crashed on Syria’s territory.
USA president Barack Obama said Washington’s North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally Turkey had a right to defend its airspace but said his priority was to make sure the standoff did not escalate.
He said that there is “available information” about “direct financial interest” of some Turkish officials having connection with enterprises held by the IS. He is now “alive and well’ at Russian airbase in Syria, the ministry said”.
Russian Federation has vehemently disputed Ankara’s claims that its aircraft crossed into Turkish airspace in the course of the bombing mission, insisting that it remained on the Syrian side of the border throughout its flight.
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The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has called for calm and de-escalation after a Russian was shot down by Turkey, prompting anger among the Russian officials.
