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Spotlight: Russia, Turkey divide over violation of Turkish airspace by downed Russian warplane

Xinhua, November 25, 2015 Adjust font size:

Russian President Vladimir Putin condemns Turkey for shooting down a Russian Su-24 warplane near the Syrian border on Tuesday, while Turkish military attributes the incident to the jet's repeated violation of Turkey's airspace.

"The Russian pilots and the warplane have in no way threatened Turkey. This is obvious," Putin said Tuesday, describing the incident as "a stab in the back."

Putin said that the incident would have serious consequences in Moscow-Ankara relations as "Russia would not tolerate crimes like what happened today."

The plane was shot down 1 km away from the Turkish border by an air-to-air missile launched by a Turkish F-16 jet in the Syrian airspace, and then crashed in Syria 4 km away from the border, Putin said while meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II in Russia's Sochi.

According to the Turkish military, the Su-24 had been warned 10 times in five minutes about its violation of Turkish airspace, before two Turkish F-16 jets "interfered."

In Washington, the Pentagon confirmed Turkey's downing of Russian fighter jet "purely an action which took place between Turkey and Russia."

On Tuesday, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu ordered the Turkish Foreign Ministry to contact the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the United nations and relevant countries about the downed plane.

The latest statement released by the Russian Defense Ministry said that the Su-24 was shot down while returning to Syria's Hmeimim airbase, where a Russian airforce group for anti-terrorist strikes is located.

"During all of the flight the plane was over Syrian territory. This has been recorded by objective means of control," Interfax news agency quoted an unnamed Russian Defense Ministry official as saying.

Insisting that analysis of readout data showed clearly no violation of Turkish airspace, the ministry has already summoned the Turkish military attache in Russia.

Preliminary data showed that the two pilots managed to eject, and details are being investigated, the official added.

Russian helicopters are searching for the pilots of the fighter jet, which reportedly crashed in Turkmen mountains in Kizidag region in southern Turkey, private Dogan News Agency reported Tuesday.

The pilots of the targeted warplane parachuted before the plane crashed near the border, according to Syria's pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV.

Local CnnTurk news broadcaster reported that one of the pilots was captured by Turkmen groups in northern Syria.

Russia has been carrying out airstrikes in the region since the weekend.

The Turkish government has previously warned Russia to end operations in the region, as Ankara said the airstrikes were targeting Turkmen groups.

The Turkish foreign ministry summoned Russian envoy in Ankara on Friday in protest against the airstrikes on Turkmen villages in northern Syria.

In May, Turkey shot down a Syrian aircraft, saying it violated Turkish airspace.

In 2013, Turkish warplanes shot down a Syrian helicopter near their border, after the helicopter allegedly violated Turkish airspace.

In June 2012, Syrian air defense shot down a Turkish fighter jet that reportedly penetrated its territorial water. Endi