MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow was willing to resume relations with Ankara. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu proposed Monday to form a joint working group with Russia in a bid to normalize the Ankara-Moscow relations.
"We never said we would offer an ‘olive branch’ or any other kind of branch to Turkey. We said Turkey had to apologize and compensate the losses inflicted as a result of a military crime… and [Russian President Vladimir] Putin said we had to consider [Turkey’s proposals], but Turkey has to do what it has to do," Lavrov said on the kp.ru website’s live feed.
Russia's retaliatory measures against Ankara include, in particular, restrictions on the activities of Turkish organizations in Russia, an embargo on Russian employers hiring Turkish citizens and a ban on certain food imports since January 1, 2016.
