The United Kingdom has dismissed Vladimir Putin’s apology regarding the tragic Azerbaijan Airlines incident and has demanded an impartial inquiry.
The Russian leader expressed his remorse to his Azerbaijani counterpart for what he termed a “tragic occurrence,” yet refrained from accepting accountability.
The Azerbaijan Airlines aircraft was en route from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny, the capital of Russia’s Chechnya region, when it deviated and crashed in Kazakhstan during an attempt to land on Wednesday.
Approximately 38 individuals perished in the incident, while 29 emerged as survivors.
The Kremlin issued a statement on Saturday indicating that air defense systems were engaged near Grozny due to a Ukrainian drone attack, although it refrained from claiming that these systems were responsible for bringing down the aircraft.
As per a Kremlin summary of a telephone conversation, the Russian president expressed to Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev “apologies for the occurrence of this tragic incident in Russian airspace.”
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Video shows inside plane before crash
The UK Foreign Office has called for a “comprehensive and impartial” investigation into the incident, asserting that Mr. Putin’s apology “fails to acknowledge that the reckless and irresponsible actions of the Russian State pose a severe and immediate threat to the interests and national security of other nations.”
“Our sympathies are with all individuals affected by this tragedy, including the families and friends of those who lost their lives,” a spokesperson remarked in a statement.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared that Russia “must offer clear clarifications” and “cease disseminating misinformation” during a conversation with Azerbaijan’s leader.
“The paramount priority now is to conduct a detailed investigation to address all inquiries concerning what truly transpired,” he stated in a post on X.
“Images and footage evidently reveal the harm inflicted on the aircraft’s fuselage, including punctures and dents, which strongly indicate an engagement by an air defense missile.”
Preliminary reports from the White House suggest that the aircraft might have been downed by Russian fire, while an Azerbaijani official has also attributed the incident to an external weapon.
Two military officials from the United States informed Sky News’ affiliate NBC News that intelligence suggests Russia may have misidentified the aircraft as a drone and subsequently shot it down.
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Survivors from the incident recounted to Azerbaijani media that they experienced loud sounds aboard the airplane while it was in a holding pattern over Grozny.
In the aftermath of the crash, Azerbaijan Airlines attributed the mishap to “physical and technical interference” and announced the halt of flights to various Russian airports.
