Turkey’s blocking of Russian aircraft flying to Syria is a calculated move to maintain its balancing strategy, experts have said.
Following a meeting of top Turkish officials with their Russian and Ukrainian counterparts, Turkey closed its airspace to Russian civilian and military aircraft carrying soldiers to Syria.
The decision will be valid for three months. During a visit to Uruguay on Saturday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters that Turkey had been giving Russia consent to use its airspace in “three-month intervals.”
However, the last period of consent expired earlier in April, and the flights have stopped.
On opposing sides, Russia, Iran and Turkey have been key players in the Syrian battleground, where the Kremlin and Tehran supported Syrian President Bashar Assad in political, logistical and military terms, while Turkey gave its support to rebel forces.
Following the closure of Turkish airspace, Russian aircraft will only be able to pass through Iran and Iraq to reach Syria.—Arab News
