'Absurd versions' — Azerbaijan's president accuses Russia, condemns Putin’s denial in plane crash

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev again accused Russia of causing the Dec. 25 crash of Airlines Flight J2-8243, which killed 38 people, and criticized Vladimir Putin for not admitting guilt during a Jan. 6 meeting with victims’ families and surviving crew members.

The flight, en route from Baku to Grozny, Chechnya, changed course and crashed in Kazakhstan. Multiple reports and official Azerbaijani statements attributed the disaster to a missile launched by a Russian Pantsir-S air defense system.

"The blame for this disaster lies with representatives of the Russian Federation," he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has maintained close ties with Azerbaijan, offered condolences during a Dec. 28 phone call but stopped short of admitting Russian responsibility.

Aliyev criticized Russia’s handling of the incident, accusing its agencies of suppressing evidence and promoting "absurd versions" of events.

Aliyev also blamed Russia for failing to close its airspace near Grozny and highlighted poor coordination between its military and civil aviation services as factors contributing to the tragedy.

Azerbaijan Airlines crash highlights Russia’s failure to close airspace amid war

The Dec. 25 Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash, likely caused by Russian air defense, shines light on a glaring issue the Kremlin has long swept under the rug. By unleashing its war against Ukraine, Russia has made its airspace a dangerous place. While Ukraine banned civilian flights over its territo…

The Kyiv IndependentOleg Sukhov

Aliyev said the plane’s black boxes were decoded in Brazil at Azerbaijan’s insistence, bypassing the Interstate Aviation Committee due to doubts about its objectivity.

Flight J2-8243 carried 67 passengers, including 42 Azerbaijani citizens, 16 Russians, six Kazakhs, and three Kyrgyz citizens. Official Azerbaijani sources confirmed that the missile responsible originated from Russian forces.

Lukashenko’s spox denies apology to Zelensky for Belarus’s involvement in Russia’s war

“No apologies have been made by the Belarus president to Zelensky, for the simple reason that we have nothing to apologize for,” Lukashenko’s spokesperson Natalia Eismont said.

The Kyiv IndependentKateryna Denisova

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