Turkey downs Russian warplane near Syria

[BLACKEAGLE]

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

 

[Diane Lane]

So, what would be the reasoning for the Russians in violating the air space of Turkey, if ISIS is not in that particular area? Are they doing this on behalf of Syria, for some reason? It's hard for an outsider to comprehend the politics of the region and the countries involved. I did see a comment elsewhere that Turkey consistently violates the airspace of Greece, so it seems curious that they would do that, yet hold Russia to a much higher standard, to the extent of actually shooting down a plane.

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Jennifer Griffin @JenGriffinFNC

US military source: 2 Turkish F16s, one fired an AIM-9 sidewinder that brought down Russian warplane. Wreckage inside #Syria. @foxnews

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

Putin: Turkey’s downing of Russian jet ‘stab in the back’

Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu (C) attend a meeting on Russian air force's activity in Syria. (Reuters)

By Andrew Osborn and Olesya Astakhova Reuters - Moscow, Sochi Tuesday, 24 November 2015

President Vladimir Putin called Turkey’s downing of a Russian fighter jet a stab in the back administered by “the accomplices of terrorists,” saying the incident would have serious consequences for Moscow’s relations with Ankara.

Speaking in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi on Tuesday before a meeting with Jordan’s King Abdullah, Putin said the downed plane had been attacked inside Syria when it was 1 kilometer from the Turkish border and had come down 4 kilometers inside Syria.

That contradicted Turkey’s assertion that the aircraft had been warned multiple times that it was straying into Turkish airspace before it was shot down.

“Today’s loss is linked to a stab in the back delivered to us by accomplices of terrorists. I cannot qualify what happened today as anything else,” said a visibly furious Putin.

“Our plane was shot down on Syrian territory by an air-to-air missile from an F-16. It fell on Syrian territory 4 kilometers from the Turkish border. It was flying at 6,000 meters 1 kilometer from Turkish territory when it was attacked.”

Putin said Russian pilots and planes had in no way threatened Turkey, but had merely been carrying out their duty to fight Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants inside Syria.

“We established a long time ago that large quantities of oil and oil products from territory captured by Islamic State (ISIS) have been arriving on Turkish territory,” he said, saying that was how militants had been funding themselves.

“And now we get stabbed in our back and our planes, which are fighting terrorism, are struck. This despite the fact that we signed an agreement with our American partners to warn each other about air-to-air incidents and Turkey ... announced it was allegedly fighting against terrorism as part of the U.S. coalition.”

If ISIS militants earned hundreds of millions of dollars from trading oil and enjoyed the protection of the armed forces “of entire governments” no wonder, said Putin, they behaved so boldly.

“We will of course analyse everything that happened and today’s tragic events will have serious consequences for Russo-Turkish relations,” he said.

Turkey is one of the most popular holiday destinations for Russians, and the two countries enjoy active diplomatic relations.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is due to visit Turkey on Wednesday, in a trip arranged before the incident, while Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to visit Russia for talks with Putin in December.

Putin expressed anger at Turkey’s decision to convene a meeting of NATO to discuss the incident, suggesting Ankara should instead have swiftly tried to contact Moscow.

“It’s as if we shot down a Turkish plane rather than them shooting down one of ours. What do they want? To put NATO at Islamic State’s (ISIS) disposal? We will never tolerate such crimes like the one committed today.”

Last Update: Tuesday, 24 November 2015 KSA 17:10 - GMT 14:10
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/11/24/Putin-Turkey-s-downing-of-Russian-jet-stab-in-the-back-.html

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

The Russians had it coming to them

Now the Turks have shot down a Russian warplane, Mr Putin might finally understand that if you play with fire, you end up getting burned

Vladimir Putin has taken an increasively aggressive stance Photo: RIA NOVOSTI/REUTERS


By Con Coughlin

12:30PM GMT 24 Nov 2015

If anyone is to blame for the shooting down of a Russian warplane on the Syrian border it is Vladimir Putin.

Ever since the Russian President came to power, we in the West have become used to the Russian military adopting an ever more aggressive stance towards the Nato alliance. Starting with the invasion of Georgia in 2008, which was launched in response to Tbilisi’s desire to join Nato, Russia’s military has been indulging in a clumsy attempt to intimidate Nato and its allies.

Apart from invading Georgia, Russian forces played a major role in the illegal annexation of Crimea – this in spite of Mr Putin’s bare-faced lies that no Russian forces were involved – and destabilising eastern Ukraine. It has maintained a systematic campaign of intimidation against the Baltic states, and its warships and warplanes have consistently challenged the boundaries of international airspace and territorial waters to the extent that, here in Britain, RAF Typhoon fighters are regularly scrambled to intercept Russian long-range bombers flying close to British borders in the North Sea.

Mr Putin’s cavalier use of the Russian military in this new aggressive posture has not gone unnoticed by Nato leaders. In recent years Nato has issued strong condemnations of Russian acts of aggression in Ukraine and the Baltics, and has also warned Moscow about the potential catastrophic consequences of conducting provocative flights over European air space.

More recently Nato has expressed its concern about Moscow’s extension of this aggressive mindset to Syria, where Russian warplanes have been deployed in support of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad.

While Mr Putin, demonstrating his usual economy with the truth, claims Russia’s military intervention is aimed at destroying Islamic State (Isil), the reality is that the Russians have been bombing moderate Syrian opposition groups, many of which have the backing of neighbouring Turkey. Consequently, this has resulted in Russian warplanes violating Turkish air space as they seek to attack moderate opposition positions in northern Syria.

Syria fields one squadron of the Russian-made Sukhoi Su-24

Last month incursions by Russian warplanes into Turkish air space prompted the US and its Nato allies to issue a blunt warning that the alliance would respond militarily if Moscow continued with what Nato leaders called “unacceptable violations of Turkish air space.”

Mr Putin should have realised that, this time, Nato was serious, especially as Turkey is deeply unhappy about Russia’s military intervention in support of Assad, Ankara’s long-standing enemy. But the Russian leader has got so used to Western leaders making dire threats and then doing nothing – as happened during the Crimea crisis – that, so far as Turkey was concerned, he could continue to push his luck.

Well now, after the Turks have shot down a Russian SU-24 warplane close to the Syrian border, Mr Putin might finally understand the truth of that old adage: if you play with fire, eventually you end up getting burned.

The Russians had it coming to them - Telegraph

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

 

[BLACKEAGLE]

 

[Lieutenant]

Interesting development. Why is the Russians reaction to this incident?

 

[Corzhens]

I had the impression that Syria is a war zone as evidenced by the exodus of Syrians to other countries. But with this latest news about the warplane of Russia that was shot by Turkish military, it makes me think that Turkey is another war zone. Amid the warning of Turkey on Russia entering their sacred air space, do they think Russia would do something bad to them? We all know that Russia has forces in Syria and those warplanes are just passing by. Now Turkey may have anxiety attack over what they had done.

 

[T-123456]

So, what would be the reasoning for the Russians in violating the air space of Turkey, if ISIS is not in that particular area? Are they doing this on behalf of Syria, for some reason? It's hard for an outsider to comprehend the politics of the region and the countries involved. I did see a comment elsewhere that Turkey consistently violates the airspace of Greece, so it seems curious that they would do that, yet hold Russia to a much higher standard, to the extent of actually shooting down a plane.

The Russians were bombing the Turkmen/Arab forces(they fight together) there for Assad,there are only Turkmen and FSA(moderate Arab fighters) in that area.
They thought they own the place,wrong judgement by them.
Russia under the pretext of bombing ISIS,is only there to give Assad a bargaining chip for the upcoming negotiations about the future of Syria.

 

[T-123456]

I had the impression that Syria is a war zone as evidenced by the exodus of Syrians to other countries. But with this latest news about the warplane of Russia that was shot by Turkish military, it makes me think that Turkey is another war zone. Amid the warning of Turkey on Russia entering their sacred air space, do they think Russia would do something bad to them? We all know that Russia has forces in Syria and those warplanes are just passing by. Now Turkey may have anxiety attack over what they had done.

You dont know much about the people and the countries of the ME,do you?
Dont worry,there is no anxiety,we know what we did and why we did it.
This is not Ukraine or Georgia,if Russia wants some,it gets some.

 

[Scorpion]

Im overjoyed today. Yes Turkey should trade over its sovereignty. Russia is wrong if it thinks it will get a handshake in return.

Well done Turkey.....Fuck the Russkies.

 

[Corzhens]

You dont know much about the people and the countries of the ME,do you?
Dont worry,there is no anxiety,we know what we did and why we did it.
This is not Ukraine or Georgia,if Russia wants some,it gets some.

You are correct on that - I don't know much about the Middle East particularly Syria and Turkey. All I know about Turkey is that it is a melting pot of different races but this I learned from a friend who works there. I don't have a good mind of history, a bit forgetful sometimes. But I believe that Russia will do something to retaliate, just my opinion. But I heard in the news this morning that US had confirmed that Turkey air force had warned the Russian plane more than 10 times, that's a justification of the shotdown.