Turkey Says It Will Return Shot Down Pilot’s Body Home To Russia

On Sunday, Turkey’s Prime Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, said that Turkey has taken the body of a Russian warplane pilot to be delivered back to Russia.

As reported by USA Today, the pilot died after his plane was shot down by Turkish fighter jets. The Russian pilot, who was later identified as Lt. Col. Oleg Peshkov, had parachuted from his plane when it was hit, but was shot by Syrian rebels from the ground while he was in the air. Syrian and Russian special forces rescued the other other pilot involved in the incident.

CNN reported that in a video of the incident, a man shouting in Turkish language requested the plane not to be shot down, and the pilot be taken alive.

“Don’t shoot at them…capture them alive!”

The prime minister said that the body of the pilot was brought to Hatay, a border province, and will be flown back to Russia.

According to CNN, religious rites were performed for the pilot by the Orthodox church of Hatay, at the request of Russia. The pilot was then returned to Ankara, the capital of Turkey.

The body of the pilot will be returned to Russian diplomats on Sunday, according to a spokesperson from the Russian embassy in Turkey. The spokesman, Igor Mityakov, also said that the body will be accompanied by military personnel.

“The embassy’s military attache will be on the flight next to the body. At the aerodrome in Ankara, Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov and the embassy’s representatives will meet the plane. The date and time of the body’s delivery to Russia are being discussed now.”

The Russian aircraft was shot down by Turkey after it violated airspace in Turkey, in spite of multiple warnings given to the pilot. However, Russian officials deny that the plane was ever in Turkish airspace.

The incident strained relations between Russia and Turkey even further, and resulted in the Russian government issuing economic sanctions on Turkey. The sanctions include ending visa-free travel to Turks who are visiting Russia, ending charted flights between Russia and Turkey, and prohibiting Russian travel companies from selling any vacations packages that include Turkey as an option.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a statement saying that Turkey was “really saddened” by the incident.

“We wouldn’t have wished this to happen. But, unfortunately, it did. We hope that the tensions with Russia will not grow and result in more saddening incidents.”

Erdogan also indicated that he would like to talk about the matter at the U.N. climate change conference in Paris, where the two countries can discuss the matter without escalating tensions. Both Erdogan and the Russian President Vladimir Putin will be attending the U.N. summit in France.

“We tell Russia, ‘Let’s talk about this issue within its boundaries, and let’s settle it. Let’s not make others happy by escalating it to a level that would hurt all our relations.”

Despite the government of Turkey insisting that it does not want to strain relations between the countries further, Russian President Putin believes that Turkey is purposefully escalating the tension. Putin called the incident “a stab in the back by the terrorists’ accomplices.”

CNN predicts that the economic sanctions on Turkey by the Russian government are only the beginning of the resulting consequences from the jet downing.

U.S. President Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande appeared together at a joint conference on Tuesday, and implored the two countries to de-escalate the matter. Obama said that the incident “points to an ongoing problem with the Russian operations” that are taking place in Syria close to the border of Turkey. Obama also indicated that he believes that if Russia were focused more on the conflicts with ISIS, then conflicts with other countries wouldn’t pose as much of a problem.

“Some of those conflicts or potential for escalation are less likely to occur.”

Make sure to check back with the Inquisitr to get more updates on the aftermath of the Russian plane shot down by Turkey.

[Photo courtesy of DHA via AP]