Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized on Saturday that a “tragic incident occurred in Russia’s airspace,” the Kremlin said, acknowledging a role in the crash of a plane carrying 67 people, but stopping short of an expression of responsibility.
The Kremlin leader’s apology, made during a call with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, is likely to tamp down anger that had been growing over the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines plane this week.
The preliminary results of an investigation into the crash that killed 38 of those on board showed that a missile from a Russian air defense system hit the Embraer 190 aircraft and that Russian authorities diverted it out of Russian airspace, people briefed on the matter said. Azerbaijani politicians have likewise publicly accused Russia of responsibility for the crash.
Putin, in his call, said that at the time of the plane’s descent, Russian air defenses were fending off an attack from Ukrainian drones in the region. Putin “once again expressed his deep and sincere condolences to the families of those killed and wished the fastest recovery to those injured,” the Kremlin said.
