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President Vladimir Putin has apologized to Azerbaijan for the “tragic incident” involving an Azerbaijani plane in Russian airspace on Christmas Day.
The Russian government called Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, who expressed his “deep and sincere condolences” to the families of the victims, the Kremlin Press Office said on Saturday.
An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 was flying from Baku to Grozny on Christmas Day when it turned and crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.
U.S. and Ukrainian officials blamed Russian anti-aircraft fire for the crash.
A Kremlin statement on Saturday did not explicitly acknowledge that Russian air defense systems were responsible, but did not deny the allegations.
The Kremlin said the plane “repeatedly attempted to land at Grozny airport” while Ukrainian military combat drones attacked nearby cities and Russian air defense forces “responded to these attacks.”
“President Vladimir Putin has apologized for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace,” the statement said.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal investigation into possible violations of aviation safety regulations, and “civilian and military experts are being questioned,” the statement added.
Officials from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Russia are already conducting official investigations led by Baku.
Putin’s cautiously worded admission is in sharp contrast to the Russian government’s repeated denials of responsibility for the 2014 downing of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17, which investigators believe was caused by Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine. The attack was attributed to a surface-to-air missile fired from government territory. A Dutch court has found three men with ties to the Russian military guilty of murder for their roles in the incident.
Richard Giragosyan, director of the Center for Regional Studies, a Yerevan-based think tank, said the Kremlin’s statement was “unexpected and unconventional” for Putin.
He said the move “reveals the overall weakness of Russia’s position” as it advances its war in Ukraine. Putin clearly “values ​​relations with Turkey, Azerbaijan’s patron state, above all else,” he added.
Moscow-based political scientist Andrei Kolesnikov said that as a result of the plane crash, “Azerbaijani society became anti-Russian overnight.”
Russia’s main aviation authority initially suggested the crash in Kazakhstan was caused by a bird hitting the plane’s engine. Azerbaijan’s president said he had heard that the plane had been diverted due to bad weather.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said Friday there were “early indications” that the plane had been attacked by Russian air defenses. Azerbaijan’s Transport Minister Rashad Nabiyev said on the same day that the accident was caused by a weapons collision.
Survivors, including passengers and crew, said there was an explosion outside the plane while it was flying over Grozny.
On Thursday, the head of Russia’s main aviation authority, Dmitry Yadorov, admitted that atmospheric conditions around Grozny were “very difficult” due to attacks by Ukrainian combat drones.
Five airlines suspended some flights to Russia in the wake of the disaster.
Turkmenistan Airlines has suspended flights from Ashgabat to Moscow, while Azerbaijan Airlines, Kazakhstan’s Kazak Airlines and UAE’s Flydubai have all suspended routes to southern Russia. Israel’s El Al Airlines has suspended flights between Tel Aviv and Moscow.
Additional reporting from London by Robert Wright
