Putin apologizes for the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines plane but declines to take responsibility

Putin has offered his sympathies for the Azerbaijan Airlines disaster, but he has refrained from acknowledging Russian air defense involvement.

President Vladimir Putin has apologized to President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan for the downing of a commercial aircraft operated by Azerbaijan Airlines on Christmas Day, marking a rare recognition of a disastrous event that occurred in Russian airspace.

Concerns regarding Russia’s responsibility have been raised by the crash, which cost 38 lives and injured 29 more.

In its initial response, the Kremlin called the incident a “tragic incident” that happened when Russian air defense systems were actively thwarting Ukrainian drone attacks.

Putin pointed to the unstable environment in the area rather than directly accepting blame for the catastrophe, even though he his condolences to the families of the dead.

Russian air defense systems reportedly opened fire on the Azerbaijan Airlines airplane as it attempted to land at Grozny Airport in Chechnya. 38 of the 67 persons on board perished when the jet crashed in Kazakhstan after being forced to reroute over the Caspian Sea. The idea that the airliner was targeted was further supported by survivors’ reports of hearing tremendous explosions.

Citing continued Ukrainian drone strikes on Chechen airspace, Russian aviation officials first characterized the airspace as “very complicated.” However, Azerbaijani officials and aviation specialists think that electronic jamming might have disrupted the plane’s GPS, making it susceptible to shrapnel from Russian missiles.

The Kremlin said on Saturday that Putin had apologized and expressed his condolences to Aliyev directly. Putin acknowledged, according to the statement, that the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft had attempted to land in Grozny several times before having to change course.

The Kremlin said, “President Vladimir Putin once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured. He also apologized for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace.”

Putin clarified that at the time of the crash, Ukrainian drones were attacking Grozny, Mozdok, and Vladikavkaz, and Russian air defenses were reacting.

Azerbaijan’s transport minister has referred to the incident as the consequence of “external interference,” even though the country has not formally blamed Russia for it.

Tensions between Moscow and the West have increased, however, as US defense officials have openly linked the event to Russian air defense systems.

While Russian authorities have started a criminal investigation, Azerbaijan has started its own. According to analysts, these concurrent investigations may provide contradictory accounts, which would make matters more complicated.

Numerous people have condemned the situation, and aviation professionals have called for Moscow to be more transparent. Critics contend that Russia’s handling of the problem is negatively reflected in its failure to respond sooner.