Nato has strongly condemned Russia for violating Turkey’s airspace after Ankara reported two incursions in two days – incidents that risk further inflaming tensions days after Russia’s military intervention in Syria began.

Ambassadors from the 28 Nato member states held an emergency meeting in Brussels to respond to what the Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, called “unacceptable violations of Turkish airspace” by a Russian jet.



A Russian warplane again violated Turkish airspace on Sunday, a Turkish foreign ministry official said late on Monday, prompting Ankara to summon Moscow’s ambassador.

It had done the same following a violation on Saturday, and said Russia would be held “responsible for any undesired incident that may occur” if it were repeated.

Nato said in a statement after its meeting: “Allies also note the extreme danger of such irresponsible behaviour. They call on the Russian Federation to cease and desist, and immediately explain these violations.”

Russia’s defence ministry said an SU-30 fighter aircraft had entered Turkish airspace “for a few seconds” on Saturday because of bad weather, adding that measures had been taken to prevent a repeat of such incidents. There has been no official reaction to Sunday’s incident.

Ankara summoned Russia’s ambassador and “strongly protested” about the violations. Turkey urged Moscow to ensure there would be no repeat of the incident and it was made clear that Russia would be blamed for any further escalation.

Turkey also lodged a formal protest with Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, and said it would consult its Nato allies about the implications of the incident.

Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was in Brussels on Monday for talks with the EU about the continuing crisis of Syrian civilians fleeing the war and heading to Europe.

Referring to Saturday’s incident, the prime minister, Ahmet Davutoğlu, said the Russian intervention risked escalating the conflict in Syria and added that Moscow had said the incursion into Turkish airspace was a mistake.

“What we have received from Russia this morning is [an admission] that this was a mistake and that they respect Turkey’s borders and this will not happen again,” Davutoğlu was quoted as saying by local media. “Necessary steps would be taken against whoever violates Turkey’s borders.”

The US secretary of state, John Kerry, warned that the incident could have led to Turkey shooting down the Russian plane.

Russia’s incursion into Turkish airspace is reckless and worrying Richard Moore, the UK’s ambassador to Turkey

“We’re very concerned about it ... and it is precisely the kind of thing we warned about,” he told reporters, saying Russia had a responsibility to act within international standards.

Stoltenberg, who met Davutoğlu on Monday, said: “Russia’s actions are not contributing to the security and stability of the region. I call on Russia to fully respect Nato airspace and to avoid escalating tensions.”

Russia began airstrikes in Syria last week in defence of Assad. The Russian defence ministry said on Monday that its air force had made 25 flights in Syria during the past 24 hours and hit nine Islamic State (Isis) targets there.

The Syrian state news agency, Sana, said airstrikes hit targets in the provinces of Hama, Latakia, Homs and Idlib. Most of the strikes targeted towns where Isis has no known presence, such as Talbiseh in Homs and Jisr al-Shughour in Idlib.

The towns are controlled by various rebel groups, some including al-Nusra Front, al-Qaida’s wing in Syria. Nevertheless, Syrian state TV maintained that the raids had targeted Isis facilities and command centres.

Turkey opposes the Russian intervention. Erdoğan’s government has insisted on Assad’s departure as a prelude to resolving the crisis, and has backed a range of rebel groups fighting to overthrow him.

Last week, Turkey issued a joint statement with its allies involved in the US-backed campaign against Isis that asked Moscow to cease attacks on the Syrian opposition and to focus on fighting Isis.

“Assad has committed state terrorism, and unfortunately you find Russia and Iran defending [him],” Erdoğan told a crowd of supporters in Strasbourg late on Sunday, according to the Hürriyet newspaper. “Those countries that collaborate with the regime will account for it in history.”

Associated Press contributed to this report