Of course, you knew this would happen…Obama taunts Putin and calls the incursion an ongoing problem with Russia, Here we go…ready for WWIII?

President Obama said the shoot-down “points to an ongoing problem with the Russian operations” in Syria, including attacks against moderate Syrian opposition groups near the Turkish border.

If Russia were going after the Islamic State instead, Mr. Obama said, such mistakes “are less likely to occur.” He said it’s important for Turkish and Russian officials to communicate and to “discourage any kind of escalation.”

Mr. Obama said the U.S. is still gathering facts of the shoot-down, but said Turkey “has a right to defend its territory and its airspace.”

PENTAGON BACKS TURKEY

The U.S. military on Tuesday labeled as an “incursion” the Russian fighter jet that was shot down by Turkish aircraft over the Syria-Turkey border.

Army Col. Steve Warren, the top military spokesman in Baghdad, confirmed the Turk’s version of events in saying they repeatedly warned the two Russian SU-24 pilots to back off.

Col. Warren used the word “incursion” to describe the Russian flight, but also said the command was studying radars and other data, such as radio chatter, to make a definite conclusion.

“The incident happened at the border,” Col. Warren said. “These things are not as clean as they are in the movies.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent years has deployed his fighters and bombers close to the air space of NATO countries, such as Turkey and the U.S., as a way to try to rattle the allies.

This is the first time he has paid a price in having one of his jets shot down and perhaps the pilots killed.

VIA: WT