Tensions in the wake of the downing of a Russian fighter jet by Turkey have not diminished at all since the incident occured on November 24; in fact the state-sponsored and non-governmental back-biting continues unabated.
Russian firms have been ordered to cease hiring Turkish citizens, and the Instagram account of at least one Russian governmental minister was breached by a Turkish cyberhacker group.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree December 1 “on measures to ensure national security of the Russian Federation from criminal and other illegal activities and the use of special economic measures against the Republic of Turkey.”
The restrictions on work visas do not, however, apply to some 53 construction and other firms with long-term contracts in Russia, according to the Sputnik news agency.
Nevertheless, the companies granted exemptions are prohibited from exceeding the total number of Turkish employees they hired up to December 31.
Meanwhile, a team of Turkish hackers has claimed responsibility for breaking into a Russian minister’s Instagram account Sunday (Jan. 3).
The Börteçine Cyber Team said it targeted the account of Russian Communications and Mass Media Minister Nikolai Nikiforov, replacing his images with those of the flag of Turkey, a still of the downed Russian Sukhoi-24, and a portrait of Turkish Republic founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
Nearly 400,000 Turkish web sites have been breached by the Anonymous hacking collective since Dec. 14, however, including those of a number of Turkish banks, according to Turkey’s Hurriyet Daily News.
