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Hollande's anti-Isis talks with Putin complicated by downing of Russian jet Russia imposes sanctions on Turkey over downed plane
(about 2 hours later)
François Hollande has landed in Moscow, where he will hold talks over dinner with Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin, as the French president continues diplomatic efforts to form a broad coalition against Islamic State after the Paris attacks. Russia has announced it will impose import sanctions on Turkey and cancel major investment projects, as the spat between the two countries over the downed Su-24 fighter jet continues.
Hollande met Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday and Matteo Renzi, the Italian prime minister, in Paris earlier on Thursday. He met David Cameron on Monday and Angela Merkel on Wednesday.
His trip to Moscow will last just a few hours, as he is whisked to the Kremlin for one-on-one talks with Putin followed by a working dinner set to include his foreign and defence ministers.
So far the pledges have been vague, and efforts to form a broad coalition have been further complicated by the shooting down of a Russian jet by the Turkish air force on Tuesday.
Related: France's anti-Isis coalition: where the key countries stand
Since the start of the conflict, the main bone of contention between Russia and the west has been whether the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, is part of the problem or part of the solution.
Moscow has been carrying out airstrikes in Syria for nearly two months, which western capitals say are aimed less at fighting Isis and more at propping up the Assad regime. Putin has said the best way to defeat Isis is to support the “legitimate government” of Assad and not to allow the institutions of state to crumble as in Iraq and Libya.
Hollande hopes to persuade Putin that Syria’s future must be without Assad, although in recent weeks he has become more amenable to the idea of a short transition period in which Assad could remain nominally in charge. Neither side expects a breakthrough on Thursday.
The diplomatic push is complicated by the differing goals of many of the players in the supposed coalition. The Turkish attack on the Russian Su-24 has made unity even harder. Russia, which reacted furiously to the Turkish incident, outlined retaliatory economic measures on Thursday, though it has ruled out a military response.
The Russian prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, said broad punitive steps could include halting joint economic projects, restricting financial and trade transactions and changing customs duties. There were calls to ban imports of all Turkish produce, while in the city of Krasnodar dozens of Turkish workers were rounded up and arrested for visa violations.The Russian prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, said broad punitive steps could include halting joint economic projects, restricting financial and trade transactions and changing customs duties. There were calls to ban imports of all Turkish produce, while in the city of Krasnodar dozens of Turkish workers were rounded up and arrested for visa violations.
Already, the country’s tourist board has suspended all tours to Turkey, a move which it estimated would cost the Turkish economy $10bn (£6.6bn). Already, the country’s tourist board has suspended all tours to Turkey, a move it estimated would cost the Turkish economy $10bn (£6.6bn). Russia also said it was suspending all military cooperation with Turkey, including closing down an emergency hotline to share information on Russian airstrikes in Syria.
Putin accused Turkey of deliberately trying to bring relations between Moscow and Ankara to a standstill, adding that Moscow was still awaiting an apology or an offer of reimbursement for damages. He earlier called the act a “stab in the back by the accomplices of terrorists” and promised “serious consequences”.
The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, told CNN that Russia, not Turkey, should be apologising, and in a speech to local officials in Ankara dismissed as “emotional” and “unfitting” Russian suggestions that joint projects with Russia could be cancelled.
Related: Despite sound and fury Putin wary of letting jet incident spiral out of controlRelated: Despite sound and fury Putin wary of letting jet incident spiral out of control
Putin accused Turkey of deliberately trying to bring relations between Moscow and Ankara to a standstill, adding that Moscow was still awaiting an apology or an offer of reimbursement for damages. He earlier called the act a “stab in the back by the accomplices of terrorists” and promised “serious consequences”.
For two days, Russian officials have fumed over the incident and demanded an apology, while the Russian ambassador in Ankara was summoned in response to the Turkish embassy in Moscow being pelted with eggs and stones.
If Moscow expected to hear grovelling from Ankara, an apology was not forthcoming. The Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, told CNN that Russia, not Turkey, should be apologising, and in a speech to local officials in Ankara dismissed as “emotional” and “unfitting” Russian suggestions that joint projects could be cancelled.
In response to Russian accusations that Turkey has been buying oil and gas from Islamic State in Syria, Erdoğan said: “Shame on you. It’s clear where Turkey buys its oil and gas ... Those who claim we are buying oil from Daesh [an Arabic acronym for Isis] like this must prove their claims. Nobody can slander this country.”In response to Russian accusations that Turkey has been buying oil and gas from Islamic State in Syria, Erdoğan said: “Shame on you. It’s clear where Turkey buys its oil and gas ... Those who claim we are buying oil from Daesh [an Arabic acronym for Isis] like this must prove their claims. Nobody can slander this country.”
Russia has insisted its plane never left Syrian airspace, while Turkey says it crossed into its airspace for 17 seconds. The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said that even if this was the case, shooting the plane down was an extreme over-reaction and looked like a pre-planned “provocation”. Russia has insisted its plane never left Syrian airspace, while Turkey says it crossed into its airspace for 17 seconds. The Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said that even if this was the case, shooting the plane down was an extreme over-reaction and looked like a pre-planned provocation.
The plane’s pilot and a marine sent on a rescue mission died. The surviving navigator claimed in an interview with Russian television that he received no audio or visual warning before the plane was shot down. The Turks have released audio recordings of what they say are warnings issued to the plane over radio. The plane’s pilot and a marine sent on a rescue mission died. The surviving navigator claimed in an interview with Russian television that he received no audio or visual warning before the plane was shot down. The Turks have released audio recordings of what they say are radio warnings issued to the plane.
Lavrov has backed Hollande’s proposal to close off the Syria-Turkey border, considered the main crossing point for foreign fighters seeking to join Isis. “I think this is a good proposal and tomorrow President Hollande will talk to us in greater detail about it. We would be ready to seriously consider the necessary measures for this,” he said on Wednesday. The Russia-Turkey spat makes work harder for François Hollande, who landed in Moscow on Thursday for talks with Putin as part of a diplomatic marathon aimed at building a wide-ranging coalition to launch airstrikes against Isis.
In Britain, a vote of MPs is due next week on the extension of airstrikes from Iraq to Syria. On Monday Cameron told Hollande that France could use a British air base in Cyprus to fly missions against Isis. “I’m in Moscow with you to figure out how we can act together in order to coordinate our actions in order to hit this terrorist group and look for political solutions for Syria,” said Hollande in televised comments before the two presidents retired for talks.
Putin expressed his condolences over the Paris attacks earlier this month: “Our positions are the same. Russia has been the target of terrorist attacks for a long time. So we empathise with you, we know how you feel, how the people of France feel.”
The Russians have offered backing for Hollande’s proposal to close off the Syria-Turkey border, considered the main crossing point for foreign fighters seeking to join Isis. “I think this is a good proposal and tomorrow President Hollande will talk to us in greater detail about it. We would be ready to seriously consider the necessary measures for this,” said Lavrov on Wednesday.
But since the start of the conflict, the main bone of contention between Russia and the west has been whether the Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, is part of the problem or part of the solution.
Related: France's anti-Isis coalition: where the key countries stand
Moscow has been carrying out airstrikes in Syria for nearly two months, which western capitals say are aimed less at fighting Isis and more at propping up the Assad regime. Putin has said the best way to defeat Isis is to support the “legitimate government” of Assad and not to allow the institutions of state to crumble as in Iraq and Libya.
Hollande hopes to persuade Putin that Syria’s future must be without Assad, although in recent weeks he has become more amenable to the idea of a short transition period in which Assad could remain nominally in charge. Despite the friendly words, neither side expects a breakthrough on Thursday.
Hollande met Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday and Matteo Renzi, the Italian prime minister, in Paris earlier on Thursday. He met David Cameron on Monday and Angela Merkel on Wednesday.
In Britain, a vote of MPs is due next week on the extension of airstrikes from Iraq to Syria. On Monday Cameron told Hollande that France could use a British airbase in Cyprus to fly missions against Isis.
Germany’s defence spokesman said Tornado reconnaissance jets would be sent to support the fight against Isis in Syria. Henning Otte said Germany would play a more active role, a day after Merkel told Hollande she would act swiftly to work out how her country could offer more support.Germany’s defence spokesman said Tornado reconnaissance jets would be sent to support the fight against Isis in Syria. Henning Otte said Germany would play a more active role, a day after Merkel told Hollande she would act swiftly to work out how her country could offer more support.