Turkey president “saddened” by downing of Russian jet

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he is “saddened” by the downing of a Russian jet by his country’s forces last Thursday.

Mr Edogan added he wished the incident had not happened and hoped it would not happen again.

“We wish it hadn’t happened, but it happened,” he said, quoted by the Associated Press.

“I hope something like this doesn’t happen again.”

The president’s remarks came as Turkey warned its citizens against non-essential travel to Russia.

The Foreign Ministry said visits should be avoided “until the situation becomes clear”.

Russia suspended its visa-free arrangements with Turkey on Friday.