Turkey seeks to calm tensions after downing Russian jet

PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkish PM Ahmet Davutoglu has said Ankara "will work with Russia and our allies to calm tensions" after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane, BBC News reports.

Writing in the UK's Times newspaper, Davutoglu stressed that fighting Islamic State was the main priority. But he also said Turkey must protect the sovereign territory.

But the prime minister also stressed that "the necessary discussions are now taking place".

Davutoglu warned that the international community "must not turn on itself", urging a united front in fighting IS.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan earlier rejected calls by Russia to apologise, saying Ankara did not need to say sorry for the violation of its airspace.

However, he told France 24 television: "If we had known it was a Russian plane, maybe we would have warned it differently".

On Thursday, Mr Putin insisted it was "impossible" for Turkey not to have known it was shooting at a Russian plane.

Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev has warned after the incident that food products, Turkish interests in Russia and a number of joint investment projects could be affected.

Turkey and Russia have important economic links. Russia is Turkey's second-largest trading partner, while Turkey is one of the biggest foreign destination for Russian tourists.