Russian strongman Vladimir Putin apologized to Azerbaijan on Saturday for the crash of a civilian flight carrying passengers from Baku to Grozny in Russia-controlled Chechnya.
Putin had a phone call with Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and “apologised for the tragic incident that occurred in Russian airspace and once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured,” the Kremlin said.
“At that time, Grozny, Mozdok and Vladikavkaz were being attacked by Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, and Russian air defence systems repelled these attacks,” the statement adds. The Kremlin opened a criminal case and says it is questioning “civil and military specialists” about the incident.
The rare apology from Putin falls short of taking responsibility for the airline disaster where at least 38 people are believed to have been killed and 29 survivors were injured. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov previously told reporters that investigators will be the ones to determine the cause of the crash, declining to comment on whether Russia struck the plane.
“The air incident is being investigated, and we don’t believe we have the right to make any assessments until the conclusions are made as a result of the investigation,” Peskov said.
The flight crashed in the Kazakh city of Aktau after diverting from southern Russia because of reported Ukrainian drone strikes on several Russian cities. It was en route from the Azerbaijan capital Baku to Grozny, a Russian city in the Chechnya region.
Azerbaijani transportation minister Rashan Nabiyev told domestic news sources that “preliminary conclusions by experts point at external impact,” in addition to witness testimony. Nabiyev also stated that the specific weapon will be determined during the investigation.
White House spokesman John Kirby told reporters Friday that initial signs indicated that Russia shot down the jet but deferred to the ongoing investigation by Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
“We do have — have seen some early indications that would certainly point to the possibility that this jet was brought down by Russian air defense systems. That said, there’s an ongoing investigation right now,” Kirby said.
“Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan are conducting this jointly. We have offered our assistance to that investigation should they need it, should they want it. But we’re going to respect that process, and I really don’t have anything more to add.”
The Russian war against Ukraine is nearing the three year mark after Putin launched an unprovoked invasion in February 2022. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to end the war when he comes into office and called for a negotiated settlement between the two sides to halt the conflict.