The Washington Post (WP) reported on Sunday that the Azerbaijani government has demanded compensation from Russia, the party responsible for the crash of a domestic passenger plane that claimed thirty-eight lives.
In a televised address, the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, reported that on Christmas morning, Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243, traveling from Baku to Grozny, Russia, sustained external damage and lost control in Russian airspace. He explained that the aircraft’s tail section suffered severe damage due to an attack from the ground.
He outlined three demands: first, Russia must apologize to Azerbaijan; second, Russia must acknowledge its wrongdoing; and third, those responsible must face criminal charges. He emphasized that the Azerbaijani state, along with the passengers and crew of the flight, deserve compensation.
The Russian government indirectly admitted that the incident resulted from a mistaken shootdown the day before the address while announcing that the leaders of both countries had spoken. The Kremlin reported that during the call, it was mentioned that the Azerbaijani passenger plane attempted to land repeatedly at Grozny Airport while both Grozny and Vladikavkaz were under attack from Ukrainian combat drones. They added that Russian air defense systems were actively repelling the assault at the time.
Russian aviation authorities initially claimed that a bird strike caused the passenger plane’s crash. They changed their narrative after experts from various countries began to suspect a mistaken shootdown. Russian President Vladimir Putin has not made official comments regarding responsibility or compensation.
Aliyev expressed his frustration by noting that Russia did not communicate with him for the first three days after the incident except for what he described as “absurd theories.” He expressed his anger and surprise that Russian officials offered nonsensical explanations rather than taking immediate responsibility, suggesting that this behavior demonstrates Russia’s desire to cover up the issue.
He pointed out that it was clear the passenger plane was not intentionally shot down. Given the friendly relations between the two nations, he expressed that Russia should have acknowledged its mistake and apologized.
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