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They and others on board were forcibly held for nine hours without food or other assistance. They were abused. Crew members were accosted at gunpoint. Turkish authorities demanded they sign a statement saying an emergency landing was necessary. They refused.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been spoiling for a fight for months. He serves shamelessly as Washington's lead regional belligerent. He's little more than a convenient stooge. Obama may get the war he wants without direct US involvement.
Erdogan claimed Moscow was sending "equipment and ammunition" to Syria. Syria's Foreign Ministry accused him of lying.
Russia was very irate. A formal protest was lodged. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, "We have no secret, and we have scrutinized the details. There were no weapons on board the plane and could not have been any."
"There was a cargo on the plane that a legal Russian supplier was sending in a legal way to a legal customer." The plane carried radar parts. International agreements permit them.
The pilot landed "because he knew he was not transporting anything illegal. We are waiting for an official reply why our diplomats were not allowed to meet with Russian passengers on board."
So far, Ankara stonewalled. It displayed no weapons seized because there are none. Vladimir Putin indefinitely postponed a planned visit. Weeks earlier, he accused Washington of being back in bed with Al Qaeda. It's no secret. Hillary Clinton admitted it months ago.
Russia's Liberal Democratic Party called for decisive action. It wants Turkey's Moscow ambassador expelled.
Other hostile exchanges followed. Tensions already are heightened. Russian Foreign Ministry deputy media and press director, Maria Zakharova , said:
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