Istanbul/Nizhny Tagil, Russia
Russia sent an advanced missile system to Syria on Wednesday to protect its jets operating there and pledged its air force would keep flying missions near Turkish air space, sounding a defiant note after Turkey shot down a Russian fighter jet.
The downing of the jet on Tuesday was one of the most serious publicly acknowledged clashes between a NATO member and Russia for half a century, and further complicated international efforts to battle Islamic State militants in Syria.
Russian officials expressed fury over Turkey's actions, and spoke of retaliatory measures that were likely to include curbing travel by Russian tourists to Turkish resorts and some restrictions on trade.
"We have no intention of fighting a war with Turkey," Lavrov said. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan also said Ankara had no intention of escalating tensions with Russia.
Speaking on a trip to the Ural mountains city of Nizhny Tagil, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the despatch of an advanced weapons system to Russia's Khmeimim air base in Syria's Latakia province.
The despatch of the weapons, which officials later said would be the S-400 missile system, is likely to be viewed as a stark warning to Turkey not to try to shoot down any more Russian planes.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia was forced to fly missions close to the Turkish border because that was where the militants tended to be located. "(Russia's) operations will continue without doubt," he said.
Russian forces launched a heavy bombardment against insurgent-held areas in Syria's Latakia province on Wednesday, near where the warplane was shot down, rebels and a monitoring group said.
SPONSORING TERRORISTS
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev alleged Turkish officials were benefiting from Islamic State oil sales, a relationship that Russian officials say helps explain why Ankara is not tougher on the militants.
Senior Turkish officials have in the past vehemently denied accusations that Turkey has in any way supported the radical Islamist group. The government says it is doing its best to combat cross-border fuel smuggling, and that it has been able to curb the trade.
The Russian foreign ministry source said the downing of the Russian jet would have an impact not just on bilateral ties but also on multilateral efforts, especially international talks in Vienna to try to find a political solution for Syria's conflict.
That issue is likely to further complicate the Vienna talks, where Russia and its partners on one side and the United States and its allies on the other have been unable to agree on what constitutes a terrorist group in Syria.
The United States and allied countries have supplied arms and other help to some groups fighting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad which Russia has been bombing on the grounds it considers them terrorist organisations.
