Putin: We Were Expecting Turkey’s Syria Operation

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Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Turkey’s operation in Syria did not come as a surprise for Russia.

Putin answered questions related to the operation at a press conference organized in the Chinese city of Hangzhou, following the G20 Summit.

According to a report from the Sputnik news website, the President said of the Euphrates Shield operation, “We cannot welcome any action that contravenes international legal rules and principles.”

“We have intelligence services”

Putin said the work of Russia’s intelligence services and Foreign Ministry protected the country from unexpected events, and added: “We saw the problems that Turkey was facing because of the events in Syria. One does not need to be an analyst to understand what is going on.”

The President conceded that intelligence could not tell the whole story, however.

“We cannot be 100 percent sure of anyone’s objectives [in Syria]. But with respect to these questions our dialogue with our Turkish and American partners is continuing.

Investigation into killed pilot

At the press conference Putin also discussed the ongoing investigation into the shooting down by Turkey of a Russian Su-24 warplane on 24 November 2015, in which a pilot was killed.

“The pilot who shot at our plane and the person who opened fire at our pilot who ejected on Syrian territory have been arrested.”

Conceding that the investigation was not proceeding as quickly as either party had hoped, he stressed: “The important point is to lay the ground for the re-launch of full cooperation.”

Syria deal with the US

The Russian President said that a new Syria deal could be made between Russia and the US in the coming days.

“In the event that a deal is reached, we can say that our common efforts with the USA against terror organizations will seriously improve and intensify,” he said, stressing that it was too early to give details of any deal.

Erdoğan: We are improving cooperation with Russia for Aleppo

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who was also in China for the G20 Summit, spoke at another press conference about Russia and the prospect of a ceasefire in Aleppo.

“We are improving cooperation with Russia in the Aleppo area. We are in the middle of working towards the announcement of a ceasefire,” he said, adding that he hoped an agreement could be reached before the approaching Kurban Holiday. (AS/PS)