Days after the crash, Putin apologized to Aliyev for what he called a “tragic incident” but stopped short of acknowledging responsibility. Aliyev, meanwhile, criticized Moscow for trying to “hush up” the incident

xMOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia’s air defense were to blame for downing an Azerbaijani jetliner in December that killed 38 people, his first admission of responsibility for the crash in an apparent bid to ease tensions between the neighbors.

Putin said the missiles fired by Russian air defenses to target a Ukrainian drone exploded near the Azerbaijani Airlines plane flying from Baku as it was preparing to land in Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, on Dec. 25, 2024. Ukrainian drones have regularly struck deep inside Russ

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