Turkey, Russia relations significant for region: Turkish PM

Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has highlighted the significance of the improvement of the bilateral relations of Turkey and Russia, to pave the way for the solution of the crisis that the region has been facing.

"Turkey and Russia should cooperate against the terrorism and the terrorist organizations such as the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Daesh. Because these terrorist organizations are the consequence of the unsolved problems of the region," Yıldırım said, in his speech at the Moscow State Diplomacy Institute of Russia.

Yıldırım also said that both countries should play an important role to prevent the crisis from growing. “The two countries' nuclear projects are part of Turkey's main projects that are leading the country towards its 2023 goals," Yıldırım added.

"Turkey and Russia have very important responsibilities. The normalization process of the bilateral relations between Turkey and Russia started in August, as both of the countries survived the hardship," he said.

The Turkish premier recalled the Russia visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan who got together with Russian President Vladimir Putin, as a milestone in the normalization process following the jet crisis of November 2015 that was caused by the downing of the Russian jet which violated Turkish airspace.

"Turkey and Russia's bilateral relation is not only based on tourism, but also the large number of marriages of Turkish and Russian origin people that live in Turkey. That fact deepens our relationship with Russia," Yıldırım said.

Any bonds between Turkey and Russia were strained over the downing of a Russian jet, which violated Turkish airspace on November 24.

In June, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan expressed his sorrow over the jet downing incident, which became the milestone of the reconstruction of the bilateral relations.

Turkish President Erdoğan and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin met in the St. Petersburg province of Russia in August 2016, which initiated the thawing of chilly bilateral relations.

The Turkish President's visit was a milestone to restore ties between the two powerful nations in the region after an 8-month-long row over a Russian jet downed by Turkish military near the Syrian border last year.