A tragic aviation disaster unfolded on Wednesday as an Azerbaijan Airlines flight crashed after entering Russian airspace near Grozny, Chechnya, killing all 38 people on board. Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed his condolences and apologized for the incident but stopped short of acknowledging Russian responsibility.
The Kremlin reported that the passenger plane repeatedly attempted to land at Grozny’s airport but was diverted eastward, ultimately crashing near Aktau, Kazakhstan. According to the Kremlin, Russian air defense systems were active at the time, responding to an alleged attack by Ukrainian combat drones on Grozny, Mozdok, and Vladikavkaz.
While the exact cause of the crash remains unconfirmed, a U.S. official told CNN that preliminary evidence suggests a Russian anti-aircraft system may have downed the jet. President Putin refrained from addressing these claims in his remarks.
Russia’s investigative committee has opened a criminal case to determine the cause of the crash. The Kremlin stated that the flight faced challenges due to the drone attacks and Russian air defenses repelling them, further complicating the aircraft’s attempts to land safely.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has strongly criticized Russia’s account, accusing Moscow of misleading the public about the crash’s cause. Sybiha suggested that Russia forced the damaged aircraft to cross the Caspian Sea, possibly to obscure evidence of what he termed a “crime.”
The incident has drawn international attention, with calls for a transparent investigation to establish accountability. Meanwhile, the families of the victims are left grieving as the world awaits clarity on the tragic sequence of events.
