Putin 'Apologizes' to Azerbaijan's President for Plane Crash, But Falls Short of Taking Responsibility

Sarah Arnold | December 29, 2024 10:30 AM

Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly apologized to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev on Sunday after an Azerbaijani airliner crashed last week, killing 38 out of the 67 people on board. Aliyey is accusing Russia of allegedly shooting down the plane. He criticized Moscow for attempting to “hush up” the issue for days and regretted that "some circles” tried to cover up the cause of the crash.

“We can say with complete clarity that the plane was shot down by Russia. (...) We are not saying that it was done intentionally, but it was done,” Aliyey said on Azerbaijani state television.

Putin responded to Aliyey’s allegations, calling the plane crash a “tragic incident” but refused to acknowledge Moscow’s responsibility. Instead, he reported that air defense systems were active near Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, aiming to repel a Ukrainian drone strike when the plane attempted to land. The Kremlin said a joint investigation with Russia, Azerbaijan, and Kazakhstan is underway.

Aliyev stated that the airliner that crashed Wednesday in Kazakhstan was struck by ground fire over Russian territory and “rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare.” He accused Russia of attempting to “cover-up” the incident for several days, expressing that he was “upset and surprised” by the conflicting explanations offered by Russian officials.

The Azerbaijani president criticized Putin for not speaking about that crash for nearly three days, except in “delirious versions.”