Azernews.Az

By Aynur Karimova

Russia and Turkey may restore their once warm relations as the nations gave some signs of desire for rapprochement.

The relations between the two countries have deteriorated since last November over the Su-24 incident, which took a life of s Russian soldier.

The first visit of a Russian military delegation to Izmir on March 29, as well as the two countries' recent agreement on the observation flights that were cancelled since February 4, can be considered as Ankara and Moscow's desire to restore previous close ties.

Such a turnaround in the considerably "cool" relations can be regarded with a desire to calm tensions to open a new page in the bilateral ties.

Commenting on Russian military delegation's visit to Turkey, Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus said that Turkey has expressed regret over the jet incident and calls to reduce tensions and normalize relations, Anadolu agency reported.

"Turkey and Russia are neighbors and live in peace and harmony for many years. Despite the fact that we are competitors on some issues, in general, we have been successfully cooperating in many sectors of the economy," he noted.

Kurtulmus believes that neither Turkey nor Russia will abandon each other and none of them will agree to break relations because of the crisis with the aircraft.

Earlier, the Russian civil aviation authorities have lifted the ban on flights to Antalya on the Mediterranean, which is known as the Turkish Riviera and a popular destination for Russian tourists.

Foreign media reported that no explanation has been given for the decision, in terms of which Ural Airlines will fly seven times a week from the Russian cities of Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod and Kazan to Antalya.

In December, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order to extend Russian economic sanctions against Turkey. Following the jet crisis, Russia began imposing an embargo on visas on Turkish travelers, as well as banned the sale of tour packages and charter flights to Turkey.

The sanctions include a ban on Russian firms importing a range of Turkish foodstuffs, as well as canceling a visa-free regime and restricting Turkish companies from working in certain Russian business sectors, including tourism.

Around 80,000 Turkish citizens live in Russia, although not all are involved in business. Moscow’s latest decision suggests that Russian tourists may return to Turkey as before. The number of Russian tourists had dropped by a million last year to 3.6 million.

Before the jet incident, about 1,500 Turkish companies operated in Russia in businesses ranging from construction and tourism to imports of Turkish fruit, vegetables and textiles. Non-official statistics show that currently, only about 200 Turkish firms are operating in Russia.

Today, several Turkish business community accuse Russian authorities of creating obstacles for their firms that go beyond the measures set out in the official sanctions. This, along with economic crisis in Russia, was why increasing numbers of Turks are heading back home, they told Reuters.

Many Turkish executives say they have experienced difficulties in getting Russian visas, and some have had to rearrange their affairs.

Not only Russia, but also Turkey is interested in normalization of relations with Moscow as the cost of sanctions imposed by Russia on Turkey was high.

Statistics show that Turkish exports to Russia fell to around $108 million in January, down two-thirds on the previous year. Russian exports to Turkey, mainly of energy, were 30 percent lower at $1.3 billion, reflecting weak oil prices.

"We want to normalize our relations with Russia as well. Russia has been not only a neighbor for us, but a partner and we had a very good relationship," Turkish Foreign Affairs Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in a speech at George Washington University in Washington, DC on March 29.

Russian officials report that the breakdown in relations between Turkey and Russia is temporary.

Maria Zakharova, the spokeswoman of Russian Foreign Ministry, while responding to a question whether the row between Moscow and Ankara was temporary, said “certainly."

Valentina Matviyenko, the Speaker of the Russian Federation Council, believes that for the ice to melt, Ankara should take the blame for the jet incident.

She told RIA Novosti earlier that only after Ankara takes such a step, Russia will resume normal relations with Turkey.

“The Russia-Turkey relations currently could be much better, to put it softly,” she said. “As you know, Russia is not to blame for this cold spell. We are ready to unfreeze relations on condition that the Turkish authorities assume responsibility for the shooting down of the Russian aircraft over Syrian territory."

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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova

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