Turkey's Erdogan says Biden comments on Putin 'unacceptable'

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Joe Biden's comments about Russia's Vladimir Putin, in which he said he thought he was a killer, were "unacceptable" and unfitting of a U.S. president.

In a TV interview broadcast on Wednesday, Biden said "I do" when asked if he believed Putin was a killer, prompting U.S.-Russia ties to sink to a new low. Putin later responded that "he who said it, did it."

"Mr. Biden's statements about Mr. Putin are not fitting of a president, and a president coming out and using such remarks against the president of a country like Russia is truly unacceptable, not something that can be stomached," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul.

"In my opinion, Mr. Putin has done what is necessary by giving a very, very smart and elegant answer," he added.

Ties between Ankara and Washington, NATO allies, have been strained over a host of issues in recent years including Turkey's record on human rights and freedoms, its acquisition of Russian defense systems and policy differences in Syria.