A man identified as Mevlut Mert Altintas stands over Andrei Karlov, the Russian Ambassador to Turkey, after shooting him at a photo gallery in Ankara, Turkey on December 19, 2016. Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

(Image: Anadolu)

(Image: REUTERS)

In a televised address Russian President Vladimir Putin, the most powerful ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, said the assassination was a "provocation" aimed at undermining the "peace process" in Syria. The Anadolu news agency said the gunman had been "neutralized" soon after the attack, Relations between Moscow and Ankara have long been fraught over the conflict, with the two supporting opposing sides. A witness told Reuters: "He took out his gun and shot the ambassador from behind. The assassination came at a time of thawing relations between Russia and Turkey and at a pivotal moment in Syria where Russia has been instrumental in President Bashar al-Assad's push to retake rebel-held areas. The longer-term implications for the Russia-Turkey relationship, which had been warming recently after plunging a year ago, were not immediately clear.
The Russian ambassador to Turkey Andrei Karlov is killed in a gun attack at an art gallery in Ankara. Russia calls the assassin, 22-year old police officer, Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş, a "terrorist". Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu goes to Moscow for a planned trilateral meeting on Syria, saying "the incident will not impact relations between Turkey and Russia".