A week after the Russian jet incident, the international press along with government officials are still chattering about the possible repercussions of Russia's possible future moves. But since then the U.S. view has become clearer. Although Washington stood in solidarity with its NATO ally Turkey and acknowledged Turkey's right to self-defense, it disfavours Turkey's decision to act on this right.

American policy makers considered the jet's downing an unnecessary incident that took American focus away from combating DAESH, while the struggle against the militant group was gaining a new momentum following the Paris attacks. Just before the downing of the Russian jet, French President François Hollande acknowledged his intent to work with Putin to undertake joint operations in Syria. Even American pundits with close connections to the White House were speaking about the inclusion of Russia in the U.S.-led anti-DAESH military coalition. The new Syria talks in Vienna were very promising as Russia decided to comply with a new road map to bring the Syrian crisis to an end. But hopes for greater cooperation went down in a fireball near the Turkish border. Despite NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg's initial statement emphasizing that NATO's assessment was consistent with the Turkish information regarding the jet incident, the U.S. State Department and the Pentagon weren't quick to confirm that information, waiting until this week to release statements. Two days after the incident, an American official contradicted one of the Turkish assessments and told Reuters that the heat signature of the airplane showed the Russian jet was hit inside Syrian airspace. The Pentagon didn't officially confirm this statement with Daily Sabah and instead referenced Stoltenberg's earlier remarks. However, this issue has remained peculiarly unresolved since American officials don't want to talk about it. Multiple questions related to the Reuters story were ignored. An unnamed American official quoted by the Turkish press even described Turkey's handling of the Russian jet as "unproportioned and heavy-handed." Although both the State Department and the Pentagon didn't embrace these comments, American officials have also been silent on whether Turkish military action against the Russian jet was justified. Their only focus is on the "de-escalation" between the parties and the war on DAESH.Apart from the supportive and friendly official statements for the Turkish cause, both President Barack Obama and Pentagon chief Ashton Carter pressured Turkey to do more on the remaining side of the Syrian border still controlled by DAESH. The administration first publicly warned Turkey to seal the border with conventional army means, namely deploying 30,000 soldiers and tanks to the border, with a story published in the Wall Street Journal. According to Turkish press reports, Turkey began to place more military vehicles and troops along the border. But the differences might not get bridged since top U.S. officials are still speaking about the issue on the record. Obama on Tuesday said he had repeated conversations with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan about the need to close Turkey's border with Syria as it has been used as a transit point for foreign fighters and DAESH's fuel shipments. Pentagon chief Carter also struck a similar tone in his testimony on Capitol Hill and called on Turkey to do more from the air while criticizing it for mainly targeting the PKK, instead of DAESH.The American attitude might be a positive thing for Turkish decision makers because it also underlined the need for new allies in the region, such as Israel. Turkey has ceased its outspoken criticisms against the Israeli government since this past spring and there is an expectation in Ankara that Tel Aviv would try to mend ties amid the challenging developments in the region, which strangely enough are pushing the once allies back together again. This might be an explanation for President Erdoğan's remarks in Paris in which he said Turkey and Israel could resolve their differences. Israel is also cautiously following the Russian deployment of S-400s on its doorstep and to the arming of the Assad regime with sophisticated anti-aircraft weaponry has posed major challenges for Israeli airstrikes.But one thing is clear from all of this: Turkey cannot depend solely on the U.S.