Türkiye will not apologize for shooting down Russian plane

(Baonghean.vn) - On November 30, The Guardian reported that Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said at a meeting with NATO that Türkiye has the right to protect its airspace and asked allied countries to try to prevent escalating tensions and focus on fighting IS.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (left) and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at a press conference in Brussels. Photo: EPA

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Ankara would not apologise for the downing of a Russian warplane on the Syrian border, stressing that Moscow should reconsider retaliatory sanctions.

"Protecting our airspace and borders is not only the right thing to do but also the responsibility of our government. Türkiye will not apologize for doing its duty," Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.

At a joint press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, referring to the sanctions imposed by Moscow after Türkiye shot down a Russian fighter jet last week, Prime Minister Davutoglu hoped "Russia would reconsider this decision for the benefit of both sides".

"If Russia wants to talk or needs to provide more information, we are ready; if Russia wants to normalize relations, we are also ready for dialogue," Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said.

However, at the time Prime Minister Davutoglu made the above statements, the Kremlin said that Russian President Vladimir Putin officially refused to receive his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the COP 21 Climate Change Summit taking place in Paris.

NATO Secretary General Stoltenberg said that Türkiye has taken the right actions to protect its airspace, the important issue now is that all parties restrain themselves from escalating tensions to create a common front against the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS).

Referring to criticism from Western countries that Russia has focused its attacks on Syrian opposition forces, Mr. Stoltenberg said: "I call on Russia to focus its attacks on IS in Syria, our common enemy."

Phuong Thao

(According to The Guardian)