Turkey’s Erdogan says Russia IS oil trade claims are ‘slander’

The defence ministry officials said the information they released on Wednesday was only part of the evidence they have in their possession, and that they would be releasing further intelligence in the next days and weeks.

Meeting in Brussels, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and other top diplomats discussed ways to intensify the campaign in Syria against Islamic State extremists and calm tensions between Turkey and Russia after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane that it believed crossed its border.

” ‘What a great family business!’ Antonov said with sarcasm”.

Turkey said the Russian SU-24 fighter plane intruded into its airspace and ignored repeated warnings to leave.

However, he says, Russian Federation presented no evidence that Erdogan and his family were involved in such trade.

Meanwhile, in Cyprus, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he would agree to meet with his Turkish counterpart this week to hear Turkey’s explanations on the downing of the Russian air force jet.

At a briefing in Moscow, defence ministry officials displayed satellite images which they said showed columns of tanker trucks loading with oil at installations controlled by Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, and then crossing the border into neighbouring Turkey.

Russian Federation has said Turkey is the biggest buyer of oil smuggled from IS-held territory, accusing Mr Erdogan and his family of direct involvement.

Antonov pointed the finger at the recent appointment of Erdogan’s son-in-law Berat Albayrak as energy minister and alleged that the president’s son runs one of the country’s main energy companies.

“The cynicism of the Turkish leadership knows no limits”.

The United States and its North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies struggled Tuesday to come up with a clear message to send Russian Federation at a time of conflicting concerns in Europe and the Middle East.

Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salameh are both dominated by rebel groups associated with the Free Syrian Army, and control over Hasakah province is divided between the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the US-backed Kurdish/Arab coalition. He also appeared to be supporting Turkey, saying it is Turkey’s right to protect its borders and airspace and expressed the US’s commitment to “Turkey’s security and its sovereignty”.

The western route goes to Turkish ports on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.

“The failure of Erdogan in Syria, the failure of his terrorist groups, means his political demise”, he said. “Our goal and the goal that we urge you for, ladies and gentlemen, is to block sources of terrorist funding in a joint effort”, Antonov said.