Russian President Vladimir Putin, in a phone call with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev regarding the Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed on December 25, apologized and said that “the Azerbaijani passenger plane, which arrived strictly on time , repeatedly tried to land at Grozny airport” and “at that time, Grozny, Mozdok and Vladikavkaz were attacked by Ukrainian drones and Russian air defense systems repelled these attacks.” This was reported by the Kremlin, which however did not specify whether one of the Russian air defense systems hit the plane. On Christmas Day, the plane was flying from Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, to Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, then diverted toward Kazakhstan and crashed during an attempted landing. The accident killed 38 people and injured all 29 survivors.
Russia’s Investigative Committee also opened a criminal investigation into the plane crash for violating road and air safety regulations, the Kremlin reports after the phone call between Putin and Alyiev. «The first investigative steps are underway, with testimonies from civilian and military experts», it is specified. Two employees of the Azerbaijani Prosecutor’s Office are currently in Grozny, working together with representatives of the Russian Prosecutor’s Office and the Investigative Committee. Relevant agencies from Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan are “cooperating closely” at the plane crash site near Aktau.
The president of Azerbaijan told his Russian counterpart that the crashed plane was hit “in Russian airspace” by “external physical interference,” supporting the theory that Russian anti-aircraft aircraft were responsible for the crash. «The Head of State stressed that the multiple holes in the plane’s fuselage, the injuries suffered by passengers and crew (…) as well as the testimonies of flight attendants and surviving passengers confirm the evidence of external physical and technical interference, “ , Azerbaijan’s presidency said in a statement summarizing a telephone conversation between the two leaders.
Source: IL Tempo
John Cameron is a journalist at The Nation View specializing in world news and current events, particularly in international politics and diplomacy. With expertise in international relations, he covers a range of topics including conflicts, politics and economic trends.
