Russia’s measures against Turkey not aimed against friendly Turkish people - Lavrov

BELGRADE, December 3. /TASS/. Russia does not equalize the Turkish people and those who gave the order to attack a Russian Su-24 bomber, involved in an antiterrorism operation in Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Thursday. "We have always said, and today President Putin confirmed that while speaking in the Kremlin, that we consider the Turkish people as our friend and do not equalize the Turkish people and those who gave the criminal order," Lavrov said. "We have already announced how this action by the Turkish leadership will affect our relations. There are decisions by the president, there are decisions that the government made to implement his decree, so all this is known," the top Russian diplomat said. "We want to avoid any steps that could inflict harm to relations between people," he said. "There probably are some incidents, but this is not the policy of the president, not the position of the government." "We will try not to create problems for either Turkish nationals or Russian nationals," Lavrov concluded. The Turkish Air Force’s F-16 fighter on November 24 shot down a Russian Sukhoi Su-24M bomber, involved in Russia's antiterrorism operation in Syria, that Ankara claims violated the country’s airspace on the border with Syria. Russia’s Defense Ministry said the Su-24M was above Syrian territory and "there was no violation of Turkey’s airspace." It said the Turkish Air Force fighter violated Syria’s airspace. Relations between Russia and Turkey considerably deteriorated after the incident. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Turkey’s attack will have "serious consequences" for Russian-Turkish relations. Putin said Ankara’s attack against the Russian Sukhoi Su-24 plane, which took part in Russia’s antiterrorism operation in Syria and did not present a threat to Turkey, was a "stab in Russia’s back" delivered by terrorists’ accomplices. Putin on November 28 signed a decree "On measures to ensure Russia’s national security and protect nationals of the Russian Federation from criminal and other illegal actions and to use special economic measures against the Turkish Republic." The document in particular introduces a ban or restriction on imports to the Russian Federation of certain goods from Turkey, whose list is to be compiled by the government. It also envisions a ban on employment of Turks, suspension of a visa-free regime with Turkey and a recommendation to tour operators to stop selling holiday packages to Turkey. Read more