Russian President Vladimir Putin issued an apology to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev following the crash of an Azerbaijani Airlines plane in Kazakhstan on December 25,, which killed 38 people. 

While Putin expressed condolences and described the incident as a “tragic event,” he did not acknowledge that Russian actions caused the crash.

The Azerbaijani Airlines passenger plane reportedly attempted multiple landings near Grozny, Chechnya, as Russian air defense systems were responding to a Ukrainian drone attack. According to the Kremlin, air defenses were active near Grozny airport at the time, but officials did not confirm whether one of the missiles struck the aircraft. 

The plane ultimately diverted across the Caspian Sea before crash-landing near Aktau, Kazakhstan.

Azerbaijani officials and media outlets have alleged that the plane was mistakenly shot down by a Russian surface-to-air missile. Euronews, citing Azerbaijani government sources, reported that the evidence points to Russian air defenses as the cause. 

Azerbaijani Member of Parliament Rasim Musabekov called the crash “impossible to deny” and demanded accountability from Russia. President Ilham Aliyev stated the crash was caused by damage over Russian territory, urging Russia to take full responsibility and apologize. Aliyev also rejected Russia’s proposal for a Moscow-led investigation due to concerns of bias.