Russia tells Turkey of steps to avoid further air space violations

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (L), British Prime Minister David Cameron (C) and French President Francois Hollande (R) take part in a meeting at the European Union leaders summit in Brussels, October 15, 2015. REUTERS/Yves Herman

ANKARA (Reuters) - The Russian air force officially informed the Turkish military on Thursday about violations of Turkish air space by its warplanes earlier this month and steps it will take to prevent a repetition, Turkey's armed forces said in a statement.

Russian planes violated the airspace of NATO member Turkey on Oct. 3 and 4 during strike missions against Syrian opposition targets in Syria.

A Russian air force delegation informed the Turkish military of the violations at a meeting in Ankara and told them of measures being taken to prevent a repetition of such incursions, the Turkish statement said.

Last week, President Tayyip Erdogan, angered by the Russian violations, warned Russia there were other places where Turkey could get natural gas and other countries with whom it could build nuclear plant.

The two countries are closely connected through energy, but are at odds over Syrian policy. Turkey says it will not welcome any solution that includes Syrian President Beshar Assad whom Russia supports.

Russia is expecting consultations to take place in the next few days with Turkish officials about Syria, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov was quoted on Thursday as saying by RIA news agency.

(Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Richard Balmforth)