Putin โAdmits โRussian Missile Downed Azerbaijani Plane, Killing 38 People
MOSCOW – Russian President Vladimir Putin has admitted that โฃa Russian missile, not a flock โคof birds as initially reported, downed an Azerbaijani Airlines plane in January, killing allโค 38 people onโข board. Theโข admission, made during a meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev,โ marks โฃa critically โimportant shiftโค in Moscow’s โaccount of the incident and follows accusations fromโฃ Baku ofโฃ a cover-up.
The downing of the aircraft โฃon January 9th sparked diplomatic tensions between theโข two historically โclose nations. The incident โoccurred amidstโข heightened regional security concerns, and the initial explanation of a bird strike โwas quickly met โwith skepticism. Putin pledged compensation for the victims’ โขfamilies and stated that a legal assessment of the actions of allโข officials involved would be conducted.
“I thank โPresident Putin for providing detailed information about โคthe tragedy,” read an official statement released byโ the Kremlin followingโ the meeting.
Previously, Aliyev had publiclyโ accused โคRussia ofโ attempting to concealโ the true cause โof the crash. Russian aviation authorities initially claimed the โplane altered course toโ avoid a bird strike. this version of โฃevents โis now โunderโ scrutiny following Putin’s โคrevelation.
The admission comes after weeks of strained relations. Russia and โAzerbaijan share close ties stemming fromโฃ their shared history as former Soviet states and strategic interests inโฃ the energy sector. The crash threatened to โdestabilize this โฃrelationship.
Putin also offered an apology to Azerbaijan, though stopped short of explicitly accepting responsibility. He stated that “tragic cases likeโ this” necessitate compensation andโค aโ full legal reviewโค of the actions taken by officials.