Turkey De Facto Admitted Attack on Su-24 Was Pre-Planned - Russian MoD

The fact that Turkish officials released a statement containing precise information on all Russian sorties in Syria shows that Ankara practically planned the downing of the Su-24 jet, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konoshenkov told reporters during a press briefing on Wednesday.

Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov reminded that Turkish media cited a statement by an official representative of the country, Numan Kurtulmus, which provided precise data on the number of Russian combat sorties in Syria. Thus, according to Konashenkov, official Ankara admitted that it receives data on the Russian sorties in Syria from the United States.

"These words of Numan Kurtulmus [the country's Deputy Prime Minister] can be taken as Turkey officially admitting that they planned the deliberate attack on the Russian jet and the murder of Russian servicemen", Konoshenkov added. 

The Turkish General Staff knew the exact time and area of the combat mission carried out by Russian bombers, when the Su-24M was shot down, Konashenkov said.

"Therefore, on November 24, when a Turkish fighter jet treacherously attacked our Su-24 bomber, the Turkish General Staff was perfectly aware of the time and operational area of the two Russian bombers' missions."

Moscow's relations with Ankara deteriorated after the Russian Su-24 aircraft was downed on November 24 by a missile fired from a Turkish F-16 fighter over Syria. Russian President Vladimir Putin described the downing as a "stab in the back" performed by the "accomplices of terrorists."

He added that the level of coordination between Russia and the members of the US-led coalition remains very low.

"It is known that the airstrikes against various targets in Syria are also carried out by the US-led coalition, the Syrian Air Force and the Turkish Air Force. The level of coordination of their [US-led coalition's] efforts, despite numerous calls by Russia, is often non-existent."