Rumblings: Turkey Has Shot Down a Russian Jet Violating Its Airspace

Turkey threatened this just a couple of days ago:

As Russian warplanes fly over Syria, neighboring NATO member Turkey says its fighter jets could open fire on them if they stray into Turkish airspace. The threat is serious and highlights the danger of a direct military confrontation between Russia and its old Cold War adversaries, including not just Turkey but the United States.

Tensions between Ankara and Moscow over Russia's stepped-up military involvement in the Syrian war escalated sharply on Monday when Turkey revealed two of its F-16 fighters intercepted a Russian jet that had crossed into Turkish airspace over the town of Yayladagi in the border province Hatay.

Now, bear in mind, Turkey is a NATO ally, and NATO has already declared it would defend Turkey in a conflict against Russia.

NATO has said it was prepared to send troops to Turkey to defend its ally after violations of Turkish airspace by Russian jets bombing Syria and Britain scolded Moscow for escalating a civil war that has already killed 250,000 people.

Officials at the U.S.-led alliance are still smarting from Russia’s weekend incursions into Turkey's airspace near northern Syria and NATO defense ministers are meeting in Brussels with the agenda likely to be dominated by the Syria crisis.

"NATO is ready and able to defend all allies, including Turkey against any threats," NATO’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters as he arrived for the meeting. ..

And now come rumors that Turkey (which Geraghty notes is very nationalistic, unlike the post-patriotic nation that is Obama's America) has shot down a Russian jet:

The problem isn't just that we're obviously not going to defend Turkey. The problem is that this sissy bitch allowed -- or even instructed -- this NATO commander to go out there and claim that there's a Red Line here, when of course there is not.

posted by Ace at 05:50 PM

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