President Vladimir Putin on Friday ordered his forces in Syria to take tough action against any threats, speaking two weeks after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane in the war-torn country.
“I order you to act as tough as possible,” he told a defence meeting in televised remarks.
“Any targets threatening the Russian grouping or our land infrastructure should be immediately destroyed.”
“I would like to warn those who would once again try to organise some sort of provocations against our servicemen,” he said in a thinly veiled threat to Ankara.
Last month, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane on the Syrian border, claiming it violated Turkish airspace.
After the downing of the jet, which led to the deaths of a pilot and another serviceman who attempted to rescue him, Russia introduced economic sanctions against Turkey and beefed up its firepower at its airbase in Syria. Putin’s call for a tougher military response is also likely to cause concern among monitors who have repeatedly accused Russia of conducting an indiscriminate bombing campaign and killing civilians in Syria.