Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Thursday, October 9, that Russian air defences were responsible for shooting down an Azerbaijani passenger jet in December 2024, killing 38 people.
This statement marks Putin’s first clear admission of responsibility for the deadly crash — a move seen as an attempt to ease growing tensions between Russia and Azerbaijan.
Putin explained that missiles fired by Russian air defence systems, which were targeting a Ukrainian drone, detonated near the Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft. The jet had departed from Baku and was preparing to land in Grozny, the capital of Russia’s Chechnya republic, on December 25, 2024. At the time, Ukrainian drones had been conducting repeated strikes deep inside Russian territory.
Speaking alongside Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, where both leaders attended a summit of former Soviet states, Putin vowed to punish those responsible and provide compensation to the victims’ families.
Azerbaijani officials had earlier said the plane was mistakenly hit by Russian air defence fire. The aircraft reportedly attempted to divert to western Kazakhstan but crashed, killing 38 of the 67 people onboard.
Although Putin offered condolences shortly after the tragedy, he had previously avoided directly admitting Russia’s role. Aliyev had criticised Moscow for trying to “hush up” the matter. The crash has since strained the once-close relationship between the two nations.
