Turkey Won’t Apologize for Shooting Down Russian Plane as Russia Takes Action

Turkey Won’t Apologize for Shooting Down Russian Plane as Russia Takes Action
AP Photos
Zachary Stieber
Zachary Stieber
Senior Reporter
|Updated:

Supported by NATO, Turkey is refusing to apologize for shooting down a Russian fighter jet that it says violated its airspace near the Syrian-Turkey border.

“No country should ask us to apologize,” Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters following a meeting with NATO’s secretary general at the alliance headquarters in Brussels, according to Reuters.

“The protection of our land borders, our airspace, is not only a right, it is a duty.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Nov. 26 that he’s waiting for an apology. Turkey’s president tried to meet with Putin, but his Russian counterpart refused.

Davutoglu added that he’s ready to provide any information that Russia seeks on the situation. 

“If the Russian side wants to talk, we are ready; if they want more information, we are ready; if they want to normalize relations, we are ready to talk,” he said.

He also said that Turkish officials “hope Russia will reconsider these measures in both our interests.”

Russia over the past few days has announced a series of measures against Turkey, including restrictions on migrant workers from there in Russia, and cancellations of charter flights and tour packages that include Turkey.

In this photo made from the footage taken from Russian Defense Ministry official web site on Friday, Nov. 27, 2015, the Osa missile defense system on the Russian missile cruiser Moskva is seen near the shore of Syria’s province of Latakia, Syria. The Russian military has ordered the ship equipped with an array of air defense missile systems to help protect Russian warplanes flying combat missions in Syria after the downing of a Russian military jet by Turkey. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service pool photo via AP)
In this photo made from the footage taken from Russian Defense Ministry official web site on Friday, Nov. 27, 2015, the Osa missile defense system on the Russian missile cruiser Moskva is seen near the shore of Syria’s province of Latakia, Syria. The Russian military has ordered the ship equipped with an array of air defense missile systems to help protect Russian warplanes flying combat missions in Syria after the downing of a Russian military jet by Turkey. Russian Defense Ministry Press Service pool photo via AP
Zachary Stieber
Zachary Stieber
Senior Reporter
Zachary Stieber is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times based in Maryland. He covers U.S. and world news. Contact Zachary at [email protected]
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