News / Europe
Erdogan: No Apology for Downing of Russian Fighter Jet VOA
Last updated on: November 26, 2015 2:07 PM
Tensions remained heated between Ankara and Moscow Thursday following Turkey's shooting down of a Russian warplane near the Turkey-Syria border earlier in the week.
In an interview with CNN, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country would not apologize for downing the jet.
"I think if there is a party that needs to apologize, it is not us," Erdogan said. "Those who violated our airspace are the ones who need to apologize."
The Turkish leader sounded somewhat more concilatory in another interview Thursday, telling France 24 television: "Had we known it was a Russian plane, we may have acted differently. But our pilots know the rules of engagement and have to do their duty to protect Turkish airspace."
'Need to talk'
Erdogan added that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin “need to talk about what happened," but said the Russian leader "has not answered my calls."
Earlier Thursday, Putin called the shoot-down "totally inexplicable treacherous stabs in the back from those we believed to be our partners and allies in the fight against terror."
He again insisted that the plane was shot down in Syrian airspace, calling the incident "against common sense and international law."
"We received no comprehensive apology from Turkey's highest political level, no offer of compensation for the harm and damage, and no promise to punish the culprits of this crime," Putin said. "One gets the impression that the Turkish government is consciously driving Russian-Turkish relations to a deadlock. We regret that."
'Stab in the back'
Immediately after the plane was shot down Tuesday, Putin called the incident a “stab in the back by the accomplices of terrorists" that would have "serious consequences."
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