Turkish national Sefa Buzgan runs four cafes in the Russian city of Chelyabinsk. Regretting the rift in relations between Moscow and Ankara following the incident, Buzgan told RT that his family is “deeply saddened by this military incident” and therefore would like to “provide all the possible assistance to the family of the killed pilot.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin described the incident as a "stab in the back, carried out against us by accomplices of terrorists."
The killed Su-24 pilot was awarded the Star of Hero of the Russian Federation posthumously.
"For heroism, courage and bravery shown during the fulfilment of his military duties, Lieutenant Colonel Oleg Peshkov has been awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation (posthumously)," the presidential decree released by the Kremlin press service read.
