Russia urged to fully respect Turkish airspace amid reported violation

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Sunday 31 Jan 2016 - 12:30 Makkah mean time-21-4-1437 Turkish President Erdogan (AP Photo) Ankara (IINA) – Turkish Foreign Ministry said that a Russian fighter jet violated Turkey's airspace on Friday, Anadolu Agency reported. An official statement released on Saturday said that the Russian craft – a SU-34 fighter-bomber – was repeatedly warned by Turkish air radar units in Russian and English. "A Russian SU-34 fighter jet violated Turkish airspace yesterday (29 January 2016) at 11.46 a.m. local time in Turkey [0946 GMT]," the statement read. The Turkish Air Force has declared an "orange alert" in key bases around the country, military sources said. Speaking to reporters at Istanbul Ataturk Airport before his departure for Chile, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the violation of Turkish airspace, which he also described as NATO airspace, was a result of Russian attempts to escalate existing tension in the region. "Russia will have to bear the consequences if the violations continue," he said. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also called on Russia “to act responsibly and to fully respect NATO airspace” but also urged “calm and de-escalation” of tensions between Moscow and Ankara. “Russia must take all necessary measures to ensure that such violations do not happen again,” Stoltenberg said in a statement. “NATO stands in solidarity with Turkey and supports the territorial integrity of our ally, Turkey,” he added. Erdogan said the Turkish Foreign Ministry had made contact with Russia to arrange a meeting with President Vladimir Putin to discuss the incident, but added that Ankara had yet to receive a response.  Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry has claimed that their fighter jet did not violate Turkish airspace. Ministry spokesperson Igor Konashenkov dismissed Ankara's statement as "propaganda", arguing that Russian and Syrian air radar units did not detect any violations and that there has long been no radio contact between Turkish and Russian air forces. AB/IINA