A passenger jet was put on a collision course with tragedy due to a regional drone war, culminating in a Russian missile strike that President Vladimir Putin has now admitted to. The Russian leader confessed his country’s role in the 2024 downing of an Azerbaijani plane, an incident that killed 38.
Speaking at a summit in Dushanbe, Putin explained that Russian air defenses were actively engaging Ukrainian drones on December 25, 2024. He claimed the fatal moment occurred when these drones detonated “meters away” from the Azerbaijan Airlines flight, causing its crash. Putin called the outcome a “tragedy.”
The plane was flying from Baku to Grozny and went down in western Kazakhstan. Out of 67 people aboard, 38 lost their lives, sparking international outrage and severely damaging Russia’s relationship with Azerbaijan, which had long suspected Moscow’s involvement.
The admission was overshadowed by a sharp accusation from Azerbaijan’s President, Ilham Aliyev, who claimed Russia had tried to “hush up” its culpability for the past ten months. This charge reflects the immense political fallout from the incident, which has undone years of diplomatic work.
To address the consequences, Putin made a solemn promise. He assured Aliyev that Russia would provide “adequate compensation” to the families of the victims and that a legal review would be launched to hold responsible officials accountable for the fatal error.