Turkey criticises 'unfounded' Russian claims over Isis oil

Turkish prime minister says Russia is trying to ‘cover up’ its infringement of Turkish airspace

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu dismisses any suggestion that Ankara should apologise for shooting down a Russian warplane in its airspace last week. Video: Reuters

Russia has been accused of trying to "cover up" its infringement of Turkish airspace with "unfounded" claims that Turkey is illegally importing oil from Islamic State, also known as Isis, in Syria.

Russian president Vladimir Putin claimed Turkey shot down its plane to protect what he described as profiteering from the oil trade - a charge Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu denies.

He told reporters: “It is not possible to cover up the violation of the Turkish airspace with unfounded accusations against Turkey.”

Mr Davutoglu renewed a call for Russia to keep military and diplomatic channels for dialogue open, insisting Russia’s stance was turning the Syria crisis into a “crisis between Russia and Turkey”.

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Mr Davutoglu called for the opening of communication channels between Turkey and Russia to prevent incidents like the downing of the plane.

Russian president Vladimir Putin and Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan did not meet at Monday's climate summit in Paris which Mr Erdogan had described as an opportunity to mend shattered ties between the two countries.

"Our call to Russia again is to open military communication channels to prevent similar incidents happening. Let's keep diplomatic channels open," Mr Davutoglu told a news conference before departing on an official visit to northern Cyprus.

“We must sit down and talk at the table instead of making unfounded allegations,” he added.

Mr Davutoglu said Turkey will continue in its efforts to expel Islamic State militants from the area on the Syrian side of the border between the two countries.

US president Barack Obama said on Tuesday he supported Turkey's right to defend itself following the downing of a Russian warplane by Turkish jets along the Syrian border last week.

Mr Obama was speaking after a meeting with Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan in Paris, where he has been attending the climate summit.

"The United States supports Turkey's right to defend itself and its air space," Mr Obama said.

“We discussed how Turkey and Russia can work together to de-escalate tensions” and find a diplomatic path to resolve the issue, he said.

Agencies