China, SA condemn assassination of Russian envoy
December 20, 2016, 6:33 am

Photo taken on Dec. 19, 2016 shows the scene of the shooting attack in Ankara, Turkey. Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov was killed in a gunman attack at an art exhibition on Monday in Ankara, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry [Xinhua]

Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov was shot dead in front of a crowd at an art gallery on Monday in the Turkish capital Ankara by a gunman.

“The Chinese side strongly condemns this savage act committed against a diplomat and opposes any form of terrorism. The Chinese side is ready to firmly support Russian efforts and actions in fighting terrorism alongside the international community, as well as improving cooperation in the fight against terror,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a letter to his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

Turkish, Russian and Iranian foreign and defence ministers are slated to meet in Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the Syrian conflict.

The gunman who killed the Russian envoy referred to the crisis in Aleppo, as seen in a video shared by Turkish media.

The assailant was an off-duty police officer who shouted “Don’t forget Aleppo” and “Allahu Akbar” (God is greatest) as he opened fire.

Russian air strikes helped Syrian forces recapture the besieged city of Aleppo that was once the command center of Islamist rebel factions last week.

Both Russian President Putin and his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Edrogan said the envoy’s killing was “a provocation” to undermine bilateral ties.

“I believe this is an attack on Turkey, the Turkish state and the Turkish people, and also a clear provocation … [in terms of] Turkish-Russian relations. I am sure our Russian friends also see this fact… Both Turkey and Russia have the will not to be deceived by this provocation,” Erdogan added.

Putin asserted that the incident was clearly linked to attempts at derailing the Syrian peace process.

“This murder is clearly a provocation aimed at undermining the improvement and normalization of Russian-Turkish relations, as well as undermining the peace process in Syria promoted by Russia, Turkey, Iran and other countries interested in settling the conflict in Syria,” Putin said in a statement on Monday evening.

Later on Monday, Russia’s BRICS ally South Africa also condemned the murder.

“The South African Government strongly condemns the killing of Russia’s Ambassador to Turkey. Condolences to his family, Government & people of Russia,” the South African Foreign Ministry tweeted.

Russia and other BRICS members are opposed to a West-backed ouster of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, calling instead for Syrian people to choose democratically.

TBP and Agencies