Kremlin says Turkey’s Erdogan requests meeting with Putin in Paris

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russian Federation had given prior information to the United States of the flight path of the plane downed by Turkey on the Syrian border. And I would also like to reiterate that in advance, in accordance with our agreement with the USA, we gave information where our planes would be working, what altitude, what areas and Turkey is part of that coalition.

Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Mr Putin, said the Kremlin had received a request from Ankara regarding a possible meeting between the two leaders at the summit, and that the Russian president would be informed about it later on Friday.

One of the pilots was shot dead in Syria after parachuting out of the burning plane while the second was found safe and sound, but one Russian soldier was killed in a rescue operation.

Moscow has also hinted the reprisals could hit two major projects with Turkey – a planned gas pipeline and a nuclear power plant.

“We see Turkey’s unwillingness to simply apologise for the incident with the plane”, he said. “And they had to know it was the Russian Air Force that was working in that area”.

They were Moscow’s first combat deaths since it launched a bombing campaign in Syria on September 30.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has angrily rebuffed the Kremlin s demand for an apology and said Putin snubbed a phone call from him after the incident.

“While the measures to defend our territory will remain in place, Turkey will work with Russian Federation and our allies to calm tensions”, Davutoglu wrote.

Putin said Moscow was ready to unite with Paris against a “mutual enemy” following the downing of the Russian airliner and the attacks in Paris.

However, in what could prove a stumbling block to co-operation between Moscow and the West, Putin and Hollande remained at odds on Thursday over the fate of Assad.