“We have closed the airspace for military planes from Russia – and also for civilian planes – destined for Syria,” said Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, without giving the reason for the decision.
Turkey has closed its airspace to Russian planes bound for Syria, Turkish media reported on Saturday, citing Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
“We have closed the airspace for military planes from Russia – and also for civilian planes – destined for Syria,” said Mevlut Cavusoglu, without giving the reason for the decision.
The head of Turkey’s diplomacy said he passed it to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, who forwarded it to President Vladimir Putin. The ban will last for three months, the Turkish minister said, with permits being renewed quarterly.
What complicates the task of the Russians in Syria
Russia, a key supporter of the Damascus regime since the civil war began in 2011, did not react immediately. For some experts, there is a risk that this closure of Turkish airspace will complicate the task of the Russian army, which has a strong presence in Syria.
As a NATO member and Ukraine’s ally, Turkey has sought to facilitate mediation between Moscow and Kyiv since the start of the war in Ukraine, and has so far refused to join Western sanctions against Russia to maintain an open line with the Kremlin.
Turkey has therefore twice hosted direct negotiations between the two parties, on March 10 at ministerial level in Antalya (South) and on March 29 in Istanbul.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has moved closer to Moscow in recent years after a series of setbacks and tensions with Westerners. The two countries even managed to pull out of the crisis that hit them after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet in 2015.