By KEITH BRADSHERNOV. 25, 2015
The New
York Times
ANKARA,
Turkey — Turkey and Russia promised on Wednesday not to go to war over the
downing of a Russian military jet, leaving Turkey’s still-nervous NATO allies
and just about everyone else wondering why the country decided to risk such a
serious confrontation.
The reply
from the Turkish government so far has been consistent: Don’t say we didn’t
warn you.
Though
minor airspace violations are fairly common and usually tolerated, Turkey had repeatedly called in Russia ’s ambassador to complain about aircraft
intrusions and about bombing raids in Syria near the border. President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday evening — and a Pentagon spokesman later
confirmed — that before a Turkish F-16 shot down the Russian Su-24 jet, Turkish
forces had warned the Russian plane 10 times in five minutes to steer away.