Russian ambassador warns of war if NATO countries shoot down aircraft

'You know, there are many NATO aircraft that violate Russian airspace ... they are not shot down,' says Alexei Meshkov

By Alperen Aktas and Seyit Kurt

ISTANBUL (AA) - Russian Ambassador to France Alexei Meshkov warned on Thursday that if NATO shoots down its aircraft, "it would mean war," referring to US President Donald Trump's suggestion.

"You know, there are many NATO aircraft that violate Russian airspace ... it happens quite often ... [but] they are not shot down," Meshkov told RTL Radio.

Earlier Trump, in a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said NATO should shoot down Russian jets if they enter the skies of member countries.

"Firstly, we're not playing games with anyone. Secondly, after the West has deceived us so many times, we only believe in facts," Meshkov said, referring to accusations of suspected Russian airspace violations of Estonian, Romanian, and Polish airspace in recent days.

The ambassador stressed the EU countries have provided "nothing tangible" to probe Russia's involvement in the alleged drone violations in Europe. He said Russia's response to the allegations was categorical: "We deny it."

Kaynak:

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