Following the incident, the Russian Defense Ministry warned the Turkish military attaché about "the possible harmful consequences of the reckless actions by Ankara against the Russian military contingent, involved in tackling international terrorism in Syria."

"Deep concerns were voiced over another provocative action by the Turkish side against the Russian patrol ship Smetlivy in the Aegean Sea, which forced them to open warning fire… in order to avoid a collision with the Turkish vessel," the ministry said in a statement.

The warning shots came from small arms and were strategically aimed to guarantee the Turkish ship was out of harm's way, the statement stressed.

The incident happened in the northern part of the Aegean Sea some 12 nautical miles from the Greek island of Lemnos, the ministry said.