Russia accuses US of pressuring Turkish Airlines to deny Russians flights to Mexico

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov has accused the United States of exerting pressure on Turkey's national airline to bar Russian citizens from flights bound to Mexico. His comments came after Moscow's embassy in Ankara this week complained that some Russian airline passengers were being indiscriminately denied boarding while transiting on Turkish Airlines flights from Istanbul to some Latin American countries. "Specifically in relation to Mexico, the reason, I think, is easy to guess", Ryabkov was quoted late on Wednesday as saying by the TASS state news agency. "It lies in the pressure that is exerted on the authorities of this country by Washington." He did not provide evidence for the accusation. Two industry sources told Reuters they believed Turkish Airlines was acting at the behest of the U.S. in an effort to stem immigration flows of Russians to its southern border. "Turkish Airlines was somehow pressured or persuaded or intimidated to be so strict," said Artur Muradyan, vice president for international tourism at the Russian Association of Tour Operators, an industry group. "I think they are under pressure from the U.S. to do this." A second source, who requested anonymity, said: "(Turkish Airlines) think people are flying (to Latin America) to cross the border into the U.S.". Most of the Russians denied boarding were flying to Mexico, the source added.<br/>