Putin's Turkey visit delayed by unusual security demands

The Middle East Eye portal reports that Vladimir Putin's visit to Turkey is being postponed due to his unusual demands. The dictator wants, among other things, his plane to be escorted by Russian fighter jets. According to the portal, he may be afraid of being shot down by Ukrainians.

The portal emphasized that Putin has postponed several official visits to Turkey since last year. Government representatives explained this, among other reasons, by stating that after starting the war against Ukraine, Putin avoids countries outside the territory of the former USSR. However, sources close to the matter told the Middle East Eye portal that the main reason for postponing the visit to Turkey is Russian demands.

Putin would like to fly to Turkey, which is a NATO member, escorted by Russian fighter jets. The requirement may be due to fear of the plane being shot down en route by Ukrainians.

The arrival of Russian fighter jets and their possible landing on Turkish territory is a complicated matter, as NATO's air defence systems in Turkey could consider the units as hostile targets. One of the sources assessed that Turkey is not inclined to disable the systems to accommodate Putin. Former Turkish ambassadors admitted in an interview with the portal that the Russian demands are very unusual.

The Russian side also complains that the three main hotels in Ankara where Putin might be accommodated are American-owned, and therefore - it was deemed - not safe.

The parties are currently discussing a possible visit by Putin in the first week of October, but Russian demands make the arrival unlikely. Putin was previously in Ankara in 2014.

According to former Turkish diplomats who worked with the diplomatic protocol for organizing visits of foreign heads of state for years, Vladimir Putin's request is bizarre.

- The Turkish government can send fighter jets to escort foreign heads of state as a gesture of goodwill. However, I do not remember a case where foreign leaders suggested bringing their fighter jets - explained a Middle East Eye source.

Already in mid-June, "Agentstvo" reported that Putin's plane was accompanied by a Su-30SM fighter jet, as is supposed to happen during foreign flights.

In December last year, the Russian Ministry of Defence even published a video showing Su-35 fighter jets accompanying the presidential plane during the head of state's visit to the United Arab Emirates. Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said this was done for security reasons.

The already high-security measures used by Vladimir Putin were significantly strengthened after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In early June, two Russian officials and a source close to the Kremlin told reporters from The Moscow Times portal that, on the orders of intelligence services, he started wearing a bulletproof vest during public outdoor events.

Source: "The Moscow Times"