Putin apologized for the accident of Azerbaijan Airlines without saying that Russia was to blame

The Kremlin issued a statement on Saturday that Putin had a telephone conversation with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.

“(President) Vladimir Putin apologized for the tragic incident that happened in Russian airspace and once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of the victims and wished the injured a speedy recovery,” the report said.

As of Saturday, the Kremlin has yet to comment on the accident. However, Russian aviation authorities said that the situation in the region is “very complicated” due to the strikes carried out by Ukrainian drones in Chechnya.

Azerbaijani aviation experts and others believe that the plane’s GPS systems were affected by electronic jams and that the plane’s shrapnel was later damaged by Russian air defense missiles.

Survivors have previously reported hearing loud noises before the plane was shot down, suggesting it was targeted.

Azerbaijan did not formally accuse Russia this week, but the country’s transport minister said the plane had suffered “external interference” and was damaged internally and externally while trying to land.

On Friday, US defense officials also said they believed Russia was responsible for the shooting.

During a telephone conversation on Saturday, Putin admitted that the plane belonging to Azerbaijan Airlines tried to land at Grozny airport in Chechnya on December 25.

According to the Kremlin statement, at that time Grozny, Mozdok and Vladikavkaz were attacked by Ukrainian drones and Russian air defense systems repelled these attacks.

Moscow noted that Russian investigators have started investigations into the criminal case. Azerbaijan has already announced that it will start an investigation.