PARIS (AP) — The latest on the war in Syria, including Russian warplane shot down by Turkey. All times local:
10:50 a.m.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his country does not wish to escalate tensions with Russia over the downing of the plane.
Speaking at an Organization of Islamic Cooperation economy meeting in Istanbul, Erdogan said Wednesday that Turkey favors “peace, dialogue and diplomacy.”
Erdogan however defended his country’s move to shoot down the plane saying “no one should expect Turkey to stay silent to border violations or the violation of its rights.”
Turkey said the Russian warplane was shot down on Tuesday after it ignored repeated warnings and crossed into its airspace from Syria.
Russian President Vladimir Putin denounced what he called a “stab in the back” and warned of “significant consequences.”
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10:45 a.m.
A Syria watchdog says a Russian military pilot whose plane was shot down by Turkey has arrived at a Russian air base in Latakia province after being rescued by the Syrian army.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says a Syrian army commando unit staged a rescue operation for the pilot after pinpointing his location. It said the pilot is alive and arrived Wednesday morning at the Hemeimeem air base, near the city of Latakia. No other details were immediately available.
Syrian TV only quoted Russia’s ambassador to France as saying the pilot is in the hands of the Syrian army.
The Russian warplane was shot down by Turkey Tuesday. A second pilot was killed.
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9:10 a.m.
Russia’s ambassador to France says a Russian military pilot shot down over Turkey is in the hands of the Syrian army.
Ambassador Alexander Orlov said on Europe-1 radio Wednesday that one of the pilots was wounded, then killed on the ground by “jihadists.”
He says the other “managed to escape and be rescued by the Syrian army.” He didn’t elaborate.
Orlov denied Turkish government statements that the Russian plane had been warned repeatedly about an airspace violation before shooting it down plane.
Orlov accused Turkey of being an “accomplice” of Islamic State extremists and playing an ambiguous role in Syria’s civil war.
However he played down concerns of escalation of violence among the international players involved in Syria.
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