Monday is the sixth anniversary of the assassination of Russian Ambassador Andrei Karlov in Ankara. A solemn ceremony was held in memory of the diplomat by the embassy. At the same time, Türkiye's foreign minister highlighted that the murder in the capital did not spoil the Turkish-Russian friendship.

The assassination came at a time when Turkish and Russian relations seemed to be thawing. Since the murder, Ankara and Moscow have gradually made progress in rebuilding ties that were disrupted by the 2015 downing of a Russian fighter jet over the Syrian border by the Turkish military.

An investigation into the assassination linked it to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), and 13 defendants accused of aiding the murderer, who was killed in a shootout with police, were handed prison sentences. The prison sentences are now being assessed by the country’s top court of appeals.

The indictment emphasizes that FETÖ planned the assassination to disrupt Turkish-Russian ties and "create a perception that Türkiye was an unsafe place even for ambassadors." Prosecutors have named Şahin Söğüt, a former employee of Türkiye’s telecoms authority and a high-ranking member of FETÖ’s "intelligence" arm, as a critical figure who supplied information about Karlov to the murderer. Söğüt relayed the murder order from FETÖ’s upper cadres to the assassin, according to prosecutors.

The investigation revealed that FETÖ tried to kill Karlov six months before his assassination but failed when the ambassador skipped an event he was supposed to attend in Ankara where his murderer would have tried to shoot him.

A trial on the assassination began in 2019 and concluded in March 2021. Şahin Söğüt and two other suspects were sentenced to two counts of aggravated life imprisonment each for an "attempt to overthrow the constitutional order" – a crime attributed to terrorist groups – and homicide. Two other suspects were handed one count of aggravated life imprisonment for aiding the suspects and terrorism. Other suspects were handed down lower prison terms for membership in a terrorist group and aiding FETÖ. A separate trial will be held for FETÖ leader Fetullah Gülen and eight other fugitive suspects. Gülen and at least two other fugitives reside in the United States and are being tried in other cases involving FETÖ’s crimes. Türkiye has repeatedly asked for their extradition from Washington since the July 15, 2016 coup attempt perpetrated by the terrorist group, to no avail.

Speaking to Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency ahead of the anniversary of the assassination, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu praised Karlov’s contributions to bilateral relations. "He was a veteran diplomat who did important service to relations at difficult times," the agency quoted Çavuşoğlu as saying. "During his tenure, he demonstrated himself to be a beloved and respected diplomat in the diplomatic community and worked to bring our ties to new levels and improve of Turkish-Russian friendship. His loss saddened not only the people of Russia but also the people of Türkiye," he said.

"The attack on Karlov was also an attack on the Turkish-Russian friendship. But Türkiye and Russia did not fall into this trap. So, those seeking to disrupt this friendship were disappointed," he said. Çavuşoğlu said Türkiye, as a country that lost the most diplomats to terrorism in the past, understood the gravity of this pain.

Çavuşoğlu said the attack also revealed the "many circles of power seeking to undermine Turkish-Russian cooperation," but added that that cooperation continued and developed. "In the past years, our relations took a dynamic course both on the bilateral level and on the regional level. We continue high-level contacts and have a joint, strong will to improve our relations," he asserted. He pointed out that the two countries improved relations in commerce, energy, tourism, culture and other fields, and this year, Türkiye and Russia would be approaching a bilateral trade volume of $30 billion. "We are also hosting about 5 million Russian tourists. In energy, we launched the Turkstream project and are on schedule for the Akkuyu nuclear plant," he said.

At the Russian Embassy in Ankara, diplomats, representatives of the Turkish Foreign Ministry and Russian citizens laid wreaths and flowers in front of a bust of Karlov for a commemoration ceremony. Speaking at the ceremony, Karlov's successor Aleksei Erkhov said it had been six years since they lost a great man. "Every year, we convene here, and every year, it is in bad weather, like nature is worried about his loss too," he lamented. Erkhov said he believed they were striving to fulfill Karlov's legacy, his "cause," pointing out the efforts to complete the Turkstream natural gas pipeline, the Akkuyu power plant and the record trade volume between countries. He underlined that Karlov was commemorated in the embassy but across Türkiye, noting that everywhere he went, people spoke fondly spoke of Karlov in the country, not only his love of his duty but also his good heart.