Putin is calling out the “deliberate” Islamization of Turkish society by Erdogan and his people, which he sees as a deeper problem than the downing of the Russian aircraft in Syria.
Turkish leadership, according to Putin, is supporting radical Islam.
“We ourselves support Islam and will continue doing so, but the point at issue is the support of a more radical branch. And that in itself creates a very unfavorable environment.”
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has accused members of the Turkish government of colluding with ISIS in smuggling oil from captured oil fields now under Islamic State control.
“Turkey’s actions are de facto protection of Islamic State,” Medvedev said, according to Russian state news organization Russia Today. “This is no surprise, considering the information we have about direct financial interest of some Turkish officials relating to the supply of oil products refined by plants controlled by ISIS.”
Vladimir Putin Says ‘Islamization’ of Turkey is Bigger Problem Than Downing of Russian Jet
“The problem is not the tragedy we witnessed yesterday,” Putin said, according to the TASS news agency. “The problem is much deeper. We observe…that the current Turkish leadership over a significant number of years has been pursuing a deliberate policy of supporting the Islamization of their country.” […]
Turkey’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu would meet “in the coming days.” However, Lavrov also launched a scathing attack on the Turkish leadership, saying that Moscow’s “attitude to the Turkish people hasn’t changed” and they “only have questions about the Turkish leadership.”
Despite saying that Russia had “no intention to go to war with Turkey,” Lavrov said that the shooting down of the Russian fighter jet was “planned provocation” by Ankara.
Russia’s top diplomat continued to lambast the Turkish leadership, saying that “terrorists” had used Turkish soil to plan attacks elsewhere in Europe and urged Russian citizens not to travel to the country because of “extremist” threats, according to Associated Press.
[…]
…Turkish leaders called for Russia to halt airstrikes in the northern Syrian area in which the plane was shot down, where an Ankara-backed Turkmen militia operates.
“There is no Daesh [in the region],” Erdogan said, using a pejorative, Arabic acronym for the Islamic State militant group (ISIS). “Do not deceive us. We know the locations of Daesh.”
Other Russian politicians accused the Turkish government of not acting strongly enough to combat ISIS near the Syrian-Turkish border. A number of suspected ISIS militants have previously been found to operate within Turkey and authorities believe the group has been responsible for a number of attacks in the country’s territory, such as July’s Suruc bombing that left 33 people dead and October’s Ankara bombings that killed 102.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said that some Turkish officials, who he did not name, have colluded with ISIS because of the lucrative oil business the group is operating after capturing a series of key oilfields in Syria.
“Turkey’s actions are de facto protection of Islamic State,” Medvedev said, according to Russian state news organization Russia Today. “This is no surprise, considering the information we have about direct financial interest of some Turkish officials relating to the supply of oil products refined by plants controlled by ISIS.”
He also warned that Turkey would face serious economic consequences for downing the Russian fighter jet, and questioned whether the countries could continue to pursue joint ventures.
“The direct consequences are likely to be the renunciation of a number of important joint projects and Turkish companies losing their position on the Russian market,” Medvedev said.
[…]
Adara Press 