 "Putin admits Russia’s role in Azerbaijan plane crash in a first-ever acknowledgment")
Russian President Vladimir Putin has publicly acknowledged his country’s role in the 2024 crash of an Azerbaijani passenger plane, calling the event a “tragedy,”.
The Azerbaijan Airlines flight, which had 67 people aboard, went down in Kazakhstan on 25 December after being rerouted from Grozny, Russia, ultimately killing 38 of those onboard.
Following the crash, Putin offered an apology to President Aliyev for the “tragic incident” but stopped short of accepting responsibility, a delay that led Aliyev to criticise Moscow for trying to “hush up” the event.
Later, in a meeting with Aliyev, Putin finally offered an explanation, saying that Russia had fired two missiles to target Ukrainian drones, and these missiles detonated “a few metres away” from the Azerbaijani plane.
“The two missiles that were fired did not directly hit the aircraft. If that had happened, it would have crashed on the spot,” AFP quoted Putin.
Putin noted that the plane’s pilot disregarded the advice of Russian air traffic controllers, who suggested a landing in Makhachkala. Instead, the pilot tried to land at his original airport before eventually crashing in Kazakhstan while attempting another landing there.
“Russia will do everything necessary in such tragic cases to provide compensation, and the actions of all officials will be legally assessed,” he said.
President Aliyev, who had earlier alleged that Russia was trying to hide the real reason for the crash, thanked Putin for his support and for sharing “detailed information” about the disaster on Thursday, the Kremlin reported.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe incident severely strained Russia’s relations with Azerbaijan, an oil-rich former Soviet state historically close to Moscow, particularly after Russia’s air transport agency first suggested the Embraer 190 plane was diverted due to a bird strike.
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