Azerbaijan urges Russia to simply accept duty for Christmas Day airplane crash

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has known as on Russia to simply accept duty for the Christmas Day airplane crash that killed 38 individuals.

The airplane reportedly got here underneath fireplace from Russian air protection methods because it tried to land in Chechnya earlier than being diverted to Kazakhstan, the place it crashed.

On Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to the Azerbaijani president for the downing of the airplane in Russian airspace, however didn’t take duty.

Aliyev accused Moscow of initially “masking up” its involvement within the accident. Whereas accepting Putin’s apology, he mentioned Russia “should admit its guilt” and pay compensation.

The Azerbaijan Airways airplane was en route from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny, the Chechen capital, on December 25 when it appeared to have come underneath fireplace.

Flight J2-8243 was pressured to divert from Chechnya and crashed close to Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 of the 67 individuals on board.

Many of the passengers on the flight had been from Azerbaijan, whereas others had been from Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

Aviation consultants and others consider the airplane’s GPS was affected by digital jamming and was later broken by shrapnel from Russian air protection missile explosions.

However Aliyev mentioned that within the days following the incident, “Russian companies offered variations [of events] on the explosion of a fuel cylinder”, which “clearly reveals that the Russian aspect needs to cowl up the matter”, based on the transcript of an interview with state media.

He additionally mentioned some in Russia had clung to the speculation that the airplane was struck by birds. Aliyev known as each theories “silly and dishonest.”

The Azerbaijani president admitted that the airplane was shot down by chance, however mentioned that within the first three days after the accident, “we heard solely absurd variations from Russia.”

Baku made a collection of calls for to Moscow over the incident on Friday, he mentioned, solely one in all which – an apology – has to date been met.

On Saturday, Putin mentioned the “tragic incident” occurred as Russian air protection methods repelled Ukrainian drones, and expressed his “deep and honest condolences to the households of the victims.”

The Russian president acknowledged that the airplane had tried a number of instances to land at Grozny airport in Chechnya.

Nevertheless, on the time, the cities of Grozny, Mozdok and Vladikavkaz had been “underneath assault by Ukrainian unmanned aerial automobiles, and Russian air protection methods repelled these assaults,” Putin mentioned.

Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelensky mentioned Russia should “cease spreading disinformation” and that the harm to the airplane’s fuselage was “very paying homage to an air protection missile strike.”

The Kremlin assertion didn’t immediately admit that the airplane was hit by Russian missiles.

Aliyev mentioned Baku had requested Russia to “admit guilt,” punish the responsible and pay compensation to Azerbaijan and the injured survivors of the crash.

Azerbaijan and Russia are allies. The Azerbaijani president mentioned: “Nobody would have thought that in a rustic pleasant to us, our airplane could be focused from the bottom.”

His remarks got here as Azerbaijan paid tribute to the pilots and passengers of the downed airplane.

Three crew members – captain Igor Kshnyakin, co-pilot Alezander Kalayaninov and flight attendant Hokuma Aliyeva – acquired distinguished honors for touchdown the airplane in a approach that allowed 29 individuals to outlive , even when it resulted in their very own demise.