Putin apologized to Aliyev for the downing of the Azerbaijan Airlines plane.

The Russian dictator Vladimir Putin called Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to apologize for the "tragic incident" involving the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft that occurred in Russian airspace on December 25. The aviation disaster resulted in the deaths of 38 people. In a statement released on December 28 on the Kremlin's website, Russian officials assured that they are assisting in the investigation of the tragedy.

“In the conversation [between Putin and Aliyev], it was noted that the Azerbaijani passenger aircraft, which was operating on schedule, had repeatedly attempted to land at the airport in Grozny. At that time, Grozny, Mozdok, and Vladikavkaz were under attack by Ukrainian combat drones, and Russian air defense systems were repelling these assaults,” the Kremlin reported.

It should be noted that Putin did not acknowledge that the aircraft was shot down by Russian air defense systems. He merely apologized that the incident occurred in their airspace.

Recall that the Embraer aircraft of Azerbaijan Airlines was en route from Baku to Grozny on December 25. The aircraft crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan, resulting in 38 fatalities. There were a total of 67 passengers and five crew members on board.

Azerbaijan Airlines stated that the aircraft experienced "external physical and technical interference." The airline has also suspended flights to Russia. These restrictions will remain in place until the investigation into the Embraer crash is concluded.

Azerbaijan's Minister of Digital Development and Transport, Rashad Nabiyev, stated on December 27 that the injured passengers and surviving flight attendants reported explosions over Grozny and external strikes on the aircraft. Meanwhile, Russian aviation initially claimed that the plane might have collided with birds.

It is worth noting that the 32-year-old pilot of the Embraer, Alexander Kalyaninov, who made the decision for an emergency landing, graduated from the Kropyvnytskyi Flight Academy in 2021. The educational institution reported that he "was very intelligent, knowledgeable, and spoke several foreign languages fluently."

Additionally, Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga stated about Russia's attempts to cover up the traces of the downing of the Azerbaijani aircraft.

Update. President Volodymyr Zelensky, during his evening video address on December 28, announced that they would share data from Ukrainian intelligence regarding the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft with partners. Zelensky emphasized that Russia will not be able to hide the full truth about the plane's disaster. According to him, partners that Azerbaijan can primarily trust are currently involved in the investigation.