Turkey Claims Russian Fighter Aircraft Violated Its Airspace

In a written statement issued on Monday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry claims that a Russian fighter aircraft violated its airspace in the southern district of Yayladagi in the province of Hatay on Saturday.

According to the statement, the Russian aircraft exited Turkish airspace into Syria after it was intercepted by two Turkish F-16s which were conducting patrol in the region.

The Acting Undersecretary of the ministry summoned the Russian ambassador in Ankara Andrey Karlov and strongly protested the incident.

The undersecretary demanded that any such violation should not be repeated and warned that otherwise Russia will be responsible for any undesired incident which may occur.

Turkish Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioglu called his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov to reiterate the position of Ankara.

Sinirlioglu also held telephone conversations with his US, French, Italian and British counterparts to evaluate the situation and plans to consult with NATO Secretary General and his German counterpart.

Since Russia launched airstrikes against targets of Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups in Syria last week, Turkey has repeatedly criticised Moscow of its military involvement as it targets the opposition to the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.