WHEN Russia began bombing in Syria in September, it hoped the mission would be short and telegenic. It is quickly getting longer and uglier. Last month Islamic State (IS) affiliates downed a Russian airliner over Egypt. Then, on November 24th, Turkish jets shot down a Russian fighter-bomber near the Syrian border, the first hostilities between Russia and a NATO member since the end of the cold war.
Turkey said the Russian Su-24 had violated its airspace and was warned ten times before Turkish F-16s fired on it. Russia says its aircraft stayed over Syria. One pilot survived, but the other was killed, as was a Russian soldier involved in a rescue mission. A livid Vladimir Putin called the downing a “stab in the back” by “accomplices of terrorists”, accusing the Turkish government of protecting IS and allowing its oil trade to flourish across the Turkish border.
For Turkey, the clash follows months of frustration over Russia’s intervention. Both countries are fighting IS, but their priorities are often opposed. Turkey wants to overthrow Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, and to prevent Syrian Kurdish militias from...Continue reading
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