According to Col. Gen. Viktor Bondarev, the commander of the Russian Aerospace Forces, Turkey’s F-16 fighters then ambushed the Su-24 in the sky as they were otherwise unable to reach the area on time after taking off from the nearby airfield. He added that the Russian Su-24 was tracked by Turkish Air Force radar for 34 minutes.
Commander of the Russian jet Lt. Col. Oleg Peshkov and navigator Capt. Konstantin Murakhtin managed to eject before the plane hit the ground in an area where fighting raged between the Syrian army and terrorists.
Peshkov was killed by militants in mid-air after he ejected over jihadist positions. Murakhtin was able to hold out for 12 hours on enemy territory and was eventually rescued by Russian marines and Syrian commandos.
During the rescue operation Russian marine Alexander Pozynich was killed when one of Russia's helicopters involved in the operation was hit by small arms fire and made an emergency landing on militant-controlled territory.
However the two countries later managed to ease tensions and reset the relationship.
Commenting on the development of ties after the incident, Turkish lawmaker from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Metin Kulünk told Sputnik Turkiye that the command to shoot down the Russian jet was "part of an operation against both Russia and Turkey."
"The aerial incident which happened on November 24 last year was part of an operation directed against two states which historically have had very close ties with each other," he told Sputnik.
"While setting up a new world order, the global system is trying to split Turkey and Russia. This is because the center of power, which is located across the Atlantic, does not wish to put up with the existence of another power which could become its competitor," the politician explained.
He further explained that the system that the center of power has set up for Syria, Iraq and Yemen, and tried to impose on Russia and Turkey, has been wisely rejected by Presidents Putin and Erdogan.
The two leaders have demonstrated their political will to settle the relationship between the two countries.
The key players of the global system have been demonstrated that it is impossible to renew the global system without Russia and Turkey, the politician said.
"The way the world moves in the foreseeable future, especially after the election of Donald Trump, will be defined by the balance of power between Trump, Erdogan and Putin," he told Sputnik.
The politician explained that the West was forced to abandon its idea to set up a new world system to its own template. Meanwhile, international trade is once again turning to the East, which is becoming a key region in the new century.
In a separate comment on the issue, Vice-chairman of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party Öztürk Yılmaz told Sputnik that the two countries should closely cooperate on securing the territorial integrity of the Syrian state and searching for ways to settle the Syrian crisis.
"We regard Russia as our reliable partner, thus we prefer adhering to principles of partnership, to consensus and respect of mutual interests and not though a stand-off," he told Sputnik.
The politician added that the main aim of Ankara is to dynamically develop cooperation in such spheres as trade, tourism, mutual investments, student exchange, etc. as it answers the interests of both countries.
