Turkey's downing of the Russian jet on its border with Syria in November sparked an unprecedented crisis in the two nations' relationship, which was then exacerbated by Moscow's role in the Syrian war.(File Photo)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin marking Russia's national day, in their first contact since Ankara downed a Russian warplane in November, an official said today.
The letter was the most significant in a series of signals from Ankara in recent weeks that it is keen to repair ties that plunged to historic lows after Turkey shot down the Russian war plane on November 24.
"We confirm media reports the president sent a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the occasion of the Russian national day," the official said, referring to the Day of Russia marked on June 12.
"I hope our relations will reach a level they deserve," Erdogan told Putin in the letter, according to the private NTV television channel.
The full contents of the letter were not made public.
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that Erdogan had sent Putin the message, saying it was received "via diplomatic channels", the Ria-Novosti news agency reported.
Ex-friends at oddsTurkey's downing of the Russian jet on its border with Syria in November sparked an unprecedented crisis in the two nations' relationship, which was then exacerbated by Moscow's role in the Syrian war.
Turkey says the Russian plane strayed into its airspace and ignored repeated warnings, but Russia insisted it did not cross the border and accused Ankara of a "planned provocation."
Erdogan wanted to meet with Putin for face-to-face talks on the sidelines of a climate summit in Paris after the plane crisis, which was rebuffed by the Russian leader.
Prime Minister Binali Yildirim also sent a letter to his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev on the occasion of the Russian national day, the Turkish official said.
Turkey did not participate at the ministerial level in the national day reception at the Russian embassy in Ankara last Friday.
In recent months, Turkish authorities have struck a reconciliatory tone to restore ties, with Erdogan hoping to get back to previous robust relations with Moscow.
Before the the plane crisis erupted, Turkey and Russia had strong cooperation on many issues, putting disagreements on Syria and Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine to one side.
Turkey is largely dependent on Russian gas and oil for its energy supplies and before the crisis the two sides had been targeting $100 billion (89 billion euros) in bilateral trade volume by 2023.