Russian MoD Requests Turkey’s Assistance in Obtaining Debris of Downed Su-25

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday it had requested Turkey’s assistance in obtaining debris of the Russian Su-25 jet downed by terrorists in the Syrian province of Idlib on February 3.

"The Russian Defense Ministry sent a request to the Turkish side to assist in obtaining all the debris of the Russian Su-25 attack aircraft downed by terrorists by MANPADS [man-portable air defense systems] in the airspace over the Syrian province of Idlib on February 3," the ministry’s statement read.

The ministry noted that its experts were "particularly interested in remains of the Russian attack aircraft's engines with traces of the missile impact in order to precisely identify the MANPADS type used by terrorists, production site and channels of supply to Syria."

Russian the Su-25 attack aircraft was downed by a MANPAD portable surface-to-air missile within an area controlled by Jabhat Fatah al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra) in Syria's Idlib. The pilot managed to eject from the jet but blew himself up after being encircled by terrorists.

Tahrir al-Sham terrorist group, linked to former terrorist al-Qaeda branch in Syria, claimed responsibility for the attack.

Following the downing, Russian forces launched a high precision strike in the area from where the MANPAD projectile had been launched, killing more than 30 militants.

READ MORE: Kremlin Deeply Worried That Terrorists Have MANPADS After Su-25 Downing in Syria

The request of the Russian Defense Ministry comes, while Turkey has been constructing observation points in the province within a ceasefire deal with Russian and Iran.

As it was reported earlier in the day, one soldier had been killed and five others wounded in a rocket and mortar attack by militants during the creation of one of these observation points.