Turkey says Russian warplane violated its airspace

The Turkish Foreign Ministry has summoned Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov over an alleged violation of Turkish airspace by a Russian warplane, the ministry said in a statement Monday, RIA Novosti reports.

According to the statement, a Russian warplane violated Turkish airspace in the province of Hatay near Syria on October 3. The aircraft left Turkish airspace after being intercepted by two Turkish F-16 fighter jets.

“The Russian ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry, where a strong protest was voiced to him. The protest was also voiced by Turkish Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioglu in a phone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Sinirlioglu has discussed the incident with his counterparts from the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and Italy and is seeking a discussion on the issue with NATO Secretary General [Jens Stoltenberg] and German Foreign Minister [Frank-Walter Steinmeier],” the statement reads.

The Turkish Hurriyet Daily News reports quoting Turkish military sources that Russia has informed Turkey that the violation of Turkish airspace near the Syrian border on Oct. 3 was due to a “navigation error.”

The Russian authorities informed the Turkish military attachĂ© in Moscow about the error, Russian Embassy officials in Ankara told HĂŒrriyet Daily News.