BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 26. Russia's data on AZAL plane damage astonished Azerbaijan, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said at a press conference reviewing the results of 2025, Trend reports.
According to him, at a meeting in Dushanbe, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that, based on the latest information, there was a Ukrainian UAV on Russian territory and that the reason for the downing of the plane was that its debris damaged the AZAL plane as a result of a missile explosion.
The minister added that in recent days, a letter signed by the head of the Russian Investigative Committee was presented to Azerbaijan. This letter was a serious surprise for Azerbaijan.
Bayramov also noted that he shared Bastrykin's opinion on the termination of the criminal case in this case.
On 25 December 2024, an Embraer 190 passenger aircraft of Azerbaijan Airlines en route from Baku to Grozny under flight number J2-8243 was subjected to external physical and technical interference. After losing control in Russian airspace, the aircraft was redirected toward Aktau, Kazakhstan, where it made an emergency landing. Of the 67 people on board, 38 lost their lives, while 29 passengers survived.