MOSCOW, Oct. 12 (Xinhua) -- Russian arms exporter on Friday denied sending weapons to Damascus via a Syrian passenger plane which was forced to land in the Turkish capital of Ankara.
Russian arms exporter Rosoboronexport said it supplied military-purpose products "in strict accordance with the international legal regulations and the Russian legislation," Rosoboronexport press officer Vyacheslav Davidenko told local media.
Rosoboronexport denied it has any cargo on the flight and has no information about the "contents or ownership of any cargo," Davidenko added.
Meanwhile, Russia's federal service for military-technical cooperation (FSVTS), a federal agency supervising the country's international military cooperation, claimed it has no relation with the cargo onboard the plane.
"These cargoes did not go via the FSVTS, so there is nothing to comment on," FSVTS representative Andrei Tarabrin told reporters here.
The Damascus-bound plane, carrying a total of 35 passengers aboard, was forced to land in Ankara on Wednesday over intelligence of "non-civilian cargo."
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, Russian diplomats had arrived in Ankara for consular supports to the Russian nationals, but they were denied access.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday the Syrian plane was carrying Russian-made munitions destined for Syria's defense ministry.
Both Rosoboronexport and FSVTS refused to comment on the Turkish prime minister's statement, while confirming the plane was not shipping their products to Syria.
The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Thursday refuted as "absolutely untrue" the allegations made by the Turkish government.
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