Syria claimed two of its warplanes were downed by Turkish jets in the Idlib province.
Syrian media reported Sunday that four pilots ejected from the planes and were able to safely land, according to the Associated Press. The Turkish Defense Ministry claimed that it had successfully targeted two SU-24s, an attack aircraft developed in the Soviet Union, and used by the Syrian Air Force.
The shoot downs came after Syria said it downed a Turkish drone that was flying over the country’s northwestern region. State-run Syrian media said the nation was closing the airspace over the area and would shoot down any aircraft that enters it.
The situation in Syria is complicated by Russia’s close involvement and coordination with the Syrian government and its dictator Bashar Assad.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar emphasized that Turkey is working to fight back Syrian forces and not Russian forces, although a senior State Department official said on Friday that “as a general rule, there is very close coordination” between the Russian and Syrian militaries.
On Feb. 27, 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in an airstrike in Idlib. The news was met with shock by Kay Bailey Hutchison, the U.S. ambassador to NATO, and was a major escalation in what is increasingly being seen as a proxy war between Ankara and Moscow.
Turkey responded the following day with missile attacks on a number of targets in Syria. Kelly Craft, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, emphasized U.S. support for Turkey in response.
“In the days ahead, the United States’ commitment to our NATO ally, Turkey, will not waver. Turkey has our full support to respond in self-defense to unjustified attacks on Turkish observation posts that resulted in the deaths of their own forces,” she said during a U.N. meeting last week.
Akar also called on Russian officials to persuade Damascus to withdraw to the edges of Idlib and claimed that Turkey has “neutralized” some 2,200 Syrian troops, eight helicopters, and more than 100 tanks.
The conflict in northwest Syria has displaced thousands of residents and triggered a humanitarian crisis.
