The UK has called for an independent investigation into the downing of an Azerbaijani plane thought to have been caused by a Russian missile.
President Vladimir Putin apologised “for the fact that the tragic incident occurred in Russian airspace” during a call with his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev on Saturday.
In an official statement, the Kremlin said Russian air defences had been firing in the vicinity of Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, at the time the Azerbaijan Airlines plane passed through the area.
But Mr Putin stopped short of admitting Russian responsibility for the crash, which killed 38 people.
Russian President Vladimir Putin apologised to Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev for the ‘tragic incident’, but did not admit responsibility (Gavriil Grigorov, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
A spokesperson for the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said: “Our thoughts are with all those affected by this incident, including the family and friends of those who have died.
“President Putin’s statement fails to recognise that the reckless and irresponsible actions of the Russian state pose an acute and direct threat to the interests and national security of other states.
“We call for a full and independent investigation.”
Both US officials and an Azerbaijani minister have blamed the crash on Russian air defences responding to a Ukrainian drone attack.
The aircraft had been travelling from Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, to Grozny when it turned towards Kazakhstan, where it subsequently crashed after reportedly being refused permission to land in Russia.
Some of the 29 passengers and crew who survived the crash told Azerbaijani media that they heard loud noises on the aircraft as it was circling over Grozny.
Mr Aliyev’s office said the Azerbaijani President had told Mr Putin the crash had been caused by “external physical and technical interference”, but did not explicitly blame Russia for the crash.
The Kremlin said Russia had launched a criminal probe into the incident, assisted by “relevant services” from Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.