The Turkish president has expressed regret for the downing of a Russian warplane in 2015. But Putin's spokesman warned it would take "more than one step" to mend ties between the countries.
Advertisement
Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim on Tuesday said the process to normalize relations between Moscow and Ankara has started, adding that improving ties with countries on the Black Sea and Mediterranean was crucial to Turkey.
The premier's comments come a day after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his regret over the downing of a Russian jet last year for an apparent incursion into Turkish airspace in November.
Russia denies its warplanes drifted into Turkish airspace during its aerial campaign in Syria, with Russian President Vladimir Putin describing the incident as a "treacherous stab in the back."
Moscow responded by banning Turkish food exports, and introducing restrictions against Turkish construction companies.
"I would like to send my condolences to the family of the Russian pilot who lost his life and express one more time that I share their pain; may they excuse us," Erdogan said in a statement.
"I believe that we will leave behind this current situation, which is to the detriment of both countries, and rapidly normalize our relations," Erdogan added in a speech later on in the day.
Turkey: the Russian embargo starts to hurt
03:43
'More than one step'
Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov described Erdogan's apology as "a very important step," adding, however, that it would take time to mend ties.
But Ankara will need to "take more than one step to meet each other," Peskov said.
"One shouldn't think that everything will be mended overnight. We will keep up our work in that direction," he added.
The move comes as Turkey seeks to re-exert its influence in the region by bolstering ties with its neighbors.
After Turkey shot down a Russian war plane, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said the incident could result in cancelling important joint projects. DW examines what's economically at stake in the dispute.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Tourism
Moscow has warned Russians against visiting Turkey, saying the threat of terrorism there was no less than in Egypt, where a bomb attack brought down a Russian passenger plane last month. Each year millions of Russian tourists spend their holidays in Turkey's seaside resorts. Some of them like the Kremlin Palace Hotel in Antalya are tailor-made for Russian guests.
Image: picture alliance/Arco Images
Trade
Turkish food exports so far have not been affected by Moscow's ban on most Western food imports. In 2014, about 4 percent of Turkish exports, mainly textiles and food, worth $6 billion (5.63 billion euros) went to Russia. In the first three quarters of 2015, however, overall exports to Russia slumped by 40 percent to $2.7 billion (2.53 euros)
Image: picture alliance/ITAR-TASS
Energy
Turkey is the second-largest buyer of Russian natural gas after Germany. Ankara is importing 28-30 billion cubic meters (bcm) of its 50 bcm of natural gas needs annually from gas giant Gazprom. Russia also supplies oil and oil products to Turkey.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Wheat and steel
Turkey together with Egypt is the largest buyer of Russian wheat. It bought 4.1 million tons of Russian wheat in the previous marketing year that ended in June. In addition, Ankara relies strongly on imports of Russian steel and semi-finished metallurgical products.
Image: picture-alliance/chromorange
Projects
Turkey commissioned Russia's state-owned Rosatom in 2013 to build four 1,200-megawatt nuclear reactors in a project worth $20 billion (18.79 billion euros). Russia and Turkey also have teamed up for the TurkStream pipeline Project, an alternative to Russia's South Stream pipeline to transport gas to Europe without crossing Ukraine. tko/hg (Reuters)