Russia Yet to Make Proposals on Lifting Restrictions Against Turkish Firms

Russian Minister of Labor and Social Protection Maxim Topilin said Wednesday the ministry had not yet presented its proposals on lifting the restrictions imposed on Turkish companies and employees to the government.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian-Turkish relations deteriorated following the downing of a Russian Su-24 aircraft by a Turkish F-16 fighter jet in Syria on November 24, 2015. In the wake of the incident, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree imposing economic measures against Ankara.

"The ministry has not offered proposals to lift the restrictions yet," Topilin said, as quoted by his press service.

The anti-Ankara measures, which came into effect on January 1, include bans or restrictions on the activities of Turkish organizations in Russia, and curbs on Russian companies employing Turkish citizens, especially in the construction industry.

On June 27, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in a letter addressed to Putin apologized over the downing of the Russian aircraft and extended condolences to the family of the pilot killed in the incident.

By doing so Ankara fulfilled one of the conditions put forward by Moscow following the incident that paralyzed the long-term partnership between the two countries. The letter also said legal proceedings were underway against the Turkish citizen allegedly involved in the Russian pilot’s death – another condition named by Russia in order to restore severed ties.