Tensions have not eased between the two countries since November and threaten to escalate with analysts warning of the possibility of further military confrontations in the skies over the Syrian border.
Turkey and Russia back opposing sides in Syria’s civil war, with Moscow four months into a bombing campaign in support of Syrian President Bashar Assad. Ankara is seeking Assad’s ouster and accuses Russia of targeting the rebels it supports. In the latest standoff, Turkey, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said its radars detected a Russian jet in its airspace Friday. NATO confirmed the incursion.
"Russia will have to face consequences if it keeps on such violations against Turkey's sovereignty," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday, the AFP news agency reported. "Such irresponsible steps do not benefit either the Russian Federation, or Russia-NATO relations, or regional and global peace.”
Russia’s Defense Ministry angrily denied any of its aircraft entered Turkish airspace, accusing Ankara of organizing a “provocation” and releasing what it said was video evidence of Turkish artillery batteries shelling positions inside Syria.
Even as Syrian peace talks take place in Geneva, Moscow has stepped up its bombing campaign against rebel groups in Syria as it backs a government drive to encircle and re-take the key city of Aleppo, and cut-off key rebel supply routes from Turkey.
