Russia, Turkey and the crisis in Syria

As the war in Syria rages, with these two countries playing a major role in the conflict — Russia and Turkey have only recently aligned their positions — such a crisis could harm their stance.

On Tuesday, the Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov was assassinated at a photo gallery in Ankara. The gunman was heard shouting “Don’t forget Aleppo” in Turkish.

As the war in Syria between the government and rebel forces rages, Russia and Turkey, who have only recently aligned their positions and play a major role in the conflict, are seeing that the crisis is engulfing them too.

Russia entered Syria in late 2015 in support of the Bashar al-Assad government, while Turkey has been supporting the rebels. Russian planes began bombing the Turkey-backed rebels, and in November 2015, Turkey shot down a Russian plane. The incident could have had catastrophic consequences for Turkey if Russia had chosen to retaliate.

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But after this event, Turkey adopted a strategy more in line with Russia’s interests in Syria. They opposed the entry of Syrian Kurdish militias in the border towns, bringing them closer to Moscow’s position.

Even after the assassination of its ambassador, Moscow’s response has been carefully worded. They have thanked Turkey for their quick response to the killing of the assassin.

While this may seem like an event similar to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria that set off World War I , the strategic relationship between the two countries is strong enough that they may not let happenings catapult into another horrific war.