Russian Official: Turkey Tries to Revive Ottoman Empire

Maria Zakharova, the official spokesperson of Russian Foreign Ministry, said that the Turkish authorities dream to revive the Ottoman Empire, but forget about its fate.

She talked to Izvestia Daily, published on May 4. She said, “The Turkish authorities are moving up the spiral of fanning the situation” and one may get an impression they are seeking to restore “the past might of the Ottoman Empire,” TASS reports.

“What could I possibly say about Turkey? We exercised patience for a very long time although we were perfectly aware of the policies the Turkish government was conducting, including the policies towards Crime and the Syrian peace settlement,” she said.

According to her, Russia tried all ways to solve the problem with Turkey but Ankara didn’t want any solution. “The problem is there’s no hoping for any early changes in Ankara’s position because it is moving exactly up the spiral of greater tensions. Everything it does only intensifies this destructiveness. All of us know what kind of a final the Ottoman Empire ended up in.”

The relations between Turkey and Russia have worsened since Turkey shot down a Russian warplane in November 2015 for violating Turkish airspace. Turkey declares that it is ready to normalize relations in all areas.