Russian President Vladimir Putin refuses to take call from Erdogan in the back drop of Russian Fighter shooting
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ANKARA: The Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has refused to apologise for downing a Russian fighter jet and lashed out at “shameful” accusations that Turkey was in cahoots with ISIS Jihadists. Vladimir Putin, his Russian counterpart, complained he had received neither apology from Turkey nor any offer “to make up for the damages” following the shooting down an SU-24 plane which was accused of crossing into Turkish airspace. Speaking as his armed forces released more recordings purportedly warning the jet before opening fire, Mr Erdogan retorted that “those who violated our airspace are the ones who need to apologise”. He later struck a more measured tone, suggesting “maybe we would have warned it differently” if Turkey had known it was a Russian plane. The Turkish President, who had previously remained cordial with Mr Putin despite major differences over Syria, revealed that the Russian President had refused to take his phone call after the incident on Tuesday morning, in a sign of how badly their relationship has suffered. The downing of the jet was the first acknowledged attack on a Russian military aircraft by a NATO member since the start of the Cold War. The fallout threatens to thwart international efforts to end the conflict in Syria and combat the threat from Isis. Reference: Independent.co
