Moscow Slams Turkey Over Shifting Blame for Refugees' Deaths

Turkey is accusing Russia of the deaths of Syrian refugees off the Turkish coast as it is unwilling to accept responsibility, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Friday.

Earlier this week, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davotuglu blamed Russia for the numerous cases of refugees drowning as they try to cross the Mediterranean Sea in boats.

"Such absurd accusations are nothing but an attempt by Ankara to avoid responsibility for the deaths of these and many other Syrians," Zakharova said in a statement published by the ministry.

According to the spokeswoman, the growing number of Syrian refugees has to do with Turkey supporting extremist and terrorist groups in the war-torn country.

The Syrian authorities have repeatedly accused Turkey of providing troops, weapons, intelligence data and financial support to Syrian militants while buying smuggled oil from Daesh.

In a briefing last month, the Russian Defense Ministry provided satellite images showing Daesh, outlawed in Russia, transporting up to 200,000 barrels of oil in at least 1,722 trucks to third-party countries, most notably Turkey on the northern border.
 (Sputnik)
8/1/16
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