SU-24M

[Plane]

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=755_1447105132

   Russians are attacking terrorists with air power.

    Fortunately , if you like Assad, the Russians make little distinction between any of the anti-Assad factions and seem to bomb the ones we like more than the ones we don't. The effectiveness of the bombing will prolong the reign of Assad a lot and won't dislodge the Daesh anytime soon, I don't think they have thought enough moves ahead. Assad will help the Russians keep a fleet in the Mediterranean, but the Daesh will send a load of help to Chechnya.

     In another report Putin is quoted about the sanctions Russia will put on Turkey, such that Turkey will pay for shooting down that aircraft.http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34993629

    Turkey is a major trading partner for Russia , Russia can make Turkey pay , but will do it by making themselves pay about as much.

      Putin ought to understand the Turks better than this. That plane was bombing ethnic Turks living in Syria , Putin had feelings for ethnic Russians living in Crimea and Ukraine and Georgia. He should be much less surprised at Turkish hard feelings twards bombing ethnic Turks in Syria.

[Xavier_Onassis]

Russians and Turks have never been allies. Russians and Muslims have traditional enemies since the early years of the Russian Empire.

The bombing was because Isis gets its money from exporting oil in trucks from Syria and Iraq across the Turkish border into Turkish ports. The Turks have to know what has been going on here, and of course, Turkey easily could block the passage of convoys of oil tanker trucks across the border. Of course, it is not just Isis who is running oil tanker trucks across the border, but the reality is that everyone who is doing this is an enemy of Assad. Assad controls the Syrian seaports.
 
The less oil that goes across the border, the less money Isis and other Assad enemies will have. So bombing the oil tankers is clearly a useful military operation.

Whether the plane was really violating Turkish airspace is in dispute. Of course, the plane was most concerned with bombing oil truck convoys. Putin is noted for his habit of violating borders. The Turks knew that it was a Russian plane, and shot it down deliberately. It may have been deliberately flying over Turkish airspace as well.


 

[Plane]

Russians and Turks are trade partners , definitely not allies.

Sanctions will be costly both ways , but an embargo of Turkish fruit is better than an invasion .

I think you are right about the tanker trucks , and this is a critical vulnerability, I wonder how many of these trucks and drivers are available?

[Xavier_Onassis]

However many there are, it is a finite number. Iraq does not manufacture motor vehicles, neither does Syria.

Starving Isis for money, or starving all the rebels for money would be essential to fulfilling the Russians' plans. Why the US did not bomb the tanker truck convoys seems to be a mystery.

[Plane]

  We have been bombing the tanker truck convoys.

But we first have been warning the drivers to run from their trucks.

So we have been less efficient than the Russians.


Iran and Syria may not build trucks , but money buys trucks, this can be understood in terms of cost and return.