The Kremlin has declined to state that Russian forces were responsible for downing the Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 on December 25, 2024. Russia acknowledged that its air defense systems were active at the time of the incident to shoot down Ukrainian drones but has stopped short of saying it brought down the aircraft.

Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev is demanding answers, saying Vladimir Putin's latest apology "isn't enough" and that Moscow must take responsibility.

Azerbaijan's president said on Monday that Russia was "guilty" over the downing of an airline last month that Baku says was shot by Russian air defenses. An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 jet crash-landed in Kazakhstan on Dec.

Experts say evidence in the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in Kazakhstan points to a possible midair explosion, not an encounter with a flock of birds.

Russia's federal air transport regulator states that the Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 which crashed after diverting to Aktau had made two unsuccessful attempts to land at Grozny, the flight's original destination.

The head of Russia's civil aviation agency said Friday that Ukrainian drones were attacking the city of Grozny as an Azerbaijani Airlines plane was trying to land there, before it later crashed in Kazakhstan.

Flight J2-8243 crashed on Wednesday in a ball of fire near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after diverting from southern Russia, where Ukrainian drones were reported to be attacking several cities. At least 38 people were killed in the crash while 29 survived.

In the crash’s aftermath, Azerbaijan has unleashed rare and stinging criticism of Russia, with the country’s president saying Moscow’s response has caused “surprise, regret and rightful indignation.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized for the plane crash in Russian air space on Christmas Day that left 38 people dead in a statement that said Russia was targeting Ukrainian drones over the plane’s planned destination at the time, but stopped short of taking responsibility.

The Kremlin on Thursday declined to say Russian forces accidentally shot at an Azerbaijani plane that crashed last month, despite Baku repeatedly urging it to accept responsibility for the fatal disaster.

Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev is demanding answers, saying Vladimir Putin's latest apology "isn't enough" and that Moscow must take responsibility.