Putin confirms Russian air defenses were activated as Azerbaijani planes approached Grozny

Today (December 28), Russian President Vladimir Putin called his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev to say that Russian air defense forces were being activated when an Azerbaijan Airlines plane tried to land in Grozny (capital of the Republic of Chechnya) before changing course and crashing in Kazakhstan.

Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Emergency Situations Minister Alexander Kurenkov at the Kremlin on December 27.

The call between President Putin and his counterpart Aliyev was made by the Kremlin amid speculation that Russian air defenses may have mistakenly shot down a flight carrying 67 people departing from Azerbaijan to the Russian Republic of Chechnya on December 25.

An Azerbaijani Airlines plane from the capital Baku to Grozny did not land and instead diverted to Kazakhstan before crashing near the city of Aktau, killing 38 people on board and leaving 29 survivors.

During the phone call, Mr. Putin told Mr. Aliyev that the plane "several times" tried to land in Grozny, and that Grozny was facing attacks by Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and that Russian air defense forces were repelling those attacks, according to TASS.

TASS quoted a statement from the Kremlin press office saying that President Vladimir Putin apologized for the plane encountering an incident while in Russian airspace, and once again expressed his sincere and deepest condolences to the families of the victims of the plane crash, and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.

The Kremlin also said the two leaders discussed in detail the questions surrounding the plane crash, and that Russia continues to cooperate closely with Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan on the incident.

Statements from Azerbaijani officials suggest the Baku government believes the plane was attacked in mid-air, according to AFP.

Following the Kremlin's announcement, Kaja Kallas, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, called for a prompt, independent investigation to find out what happened to the Azerbaijani Airlines flight on December 25.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ong-putin-xac-nhan-phong-khong-nga-dang-kich-hoat-khi-may-bay-azerbaijan-den-grozny-185241228203017061.htm