Russian Turkey Stand Off Jet Down ‘Reprisals Promised’

“One on board was wounded when he parachuted down and killed in a savage way on the ground by jihadists in the area. The other managed to escape and according to the latest information we have, he was picked up by the Syrian army and will be taken to the Russian airbase,” Alexander Orlov told Europe 1 radio.

Fears had been held for his safety after his co-pilot was killed by Syrian rebel forces after they together ejected from the destroyed Russian warplane and parachuted to the ground.

Orlov said Russia would be prepared to “create a joint staff” to fight Islamic State in which Moscow would work with France, the US and even Turkey — despite accusing the latter nation of being an “accomplice” of IS extremists.

“We are prepared to… plan strikes on Daesh (IS) positions together and create a joint staff with France, the US, with all the countries who want to be in this coalition,” said Alexander Orlov,” adding: “If the Turks want to be in at as well, they are welcome.”

DISTURBING FOOTAGE OF CHOPPER EXPLOSION

VIDEO has captured the horrifying moment a Russian rescue helicopter was blown up after a marine was killed trying to save the pilots.

Rebels in northern Syria released disturbing footage to back claims they killed one of the Russian jet’s crew members and the soldier sent to save them before also destroying the helicopter.

The clip, published by the Free Syrian Army, shows a fighter operating American-made artillery to strike the helicopter with a missile shortly after they forced it to make an emergency landing, causing it to explode into a fireball.

RUSSIA URGED TO FOCUS AIRSTRIKES ON ISIS

US President Barack Obama has pressed Russia to focus its attacks in Syria on Islamic State militants after Turkey heightened tensions by shooting down a Russian warplane.

Obama said such confrontations could be avoided if Russia stopped attacking “moderate” Syrian rebels battling forces loyal to dictator President Bashar al-Assad. Russia is supporting Assad’s government, while western nations insist he needs to step down for peace to take hold in Syria.

“This points to an ongoing problem with the Russian operations in the sense that they are operating very close to a Turkish border and they are going after moderate opposition that are supported by not only Turkey but a wide range of countries,” Obama said.

If Russia directs its energies toward IS forces, “some of those conflicts or potentials for mistakes or escalation are less likely to occur”, Obama said.

MOSCOW DENIES BEING WARNED

Audio recordings of Turkish pilots challenging Russian fighter jets minutes before shooting one down appear to contradict Moscow’s denial that any such warning was given.

Russia’s defence ministry issued a statement claiming there was ‘no objective evidence’ of a warning before Turkish F-16 fighter jets opened fire, shooting down a Russian Su-24M ‘Fencer’ on its border with Syria.

US military sources have confirmed they had monitored the warnings, and several recordings purporting to be challenges made by the Turkish pilots have been released.

Such a clash has been feared ever since Russia deployed aircraft, tanks and troops to support the Syrian al-Assad regeime in its struggle against both US-backed rebels and Islamic State jihadists in September.

Moscow, quoting what it said were preliminary reports, said one of two pilots who ejected from the combat jet was killed by gunfire from the ground as he descended.

And a Russian soldier was killed when a helicopter search-and-rescue operation came under fire, it said.

Shortly after the incident, Russian President Vladimir Putin slammed Ankara as “accomplices of terrorists”.

Russia has since declared it will deploy the anti-aircraft cruiser Moskva close to the coastal Syria-Turkey border in response to the incident. All ground-strike missions will also now be covered by fighter aircraft

“We warn that every target posing a potential threat will be destroyed,” lieutenant general Sergey Rudskoy said during a briefing in Moscow.

US President Barack Obama said Turkey had “a right to defend its territory and its airspace” but urged against any escalation, while NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg also called for calm.

Analysts said the incident risks derailing efforts to bring peace to Syria that were gaining tentative momentum following the November 13 Paris terror attacks, claimed by Islamic State militants who control swathes of northern Syria.

BLAME GAME ESCALATES

The US military has backed up Turkey’s claim that Turkish pilots warned a Russian jet 10 times – but failed to get a response – before shooting it down.

Moscow insisted that the jet had stayed inside Syrian territory, and Damascus denounced the incident as “flagrant aggression” against Syrian sovereignty.

Putin said the plane fell in Syrian territory four kilometres from the border and “did not in any way threaten Turkey”.

“We were able to hear everything that was going on, these (communications) were on open channels,” Baghdad-based military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said in a video call with reporters.

The  jet was in Turkish airspace for several seconds

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