Aliyev explained the reason for the crash of the Azerbaijani plane and demanded compensation.

The President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, made statements to state television following a ceremony held for the two pilots and one cabin crew member who lost their lives in the passenger plane belonging to Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) that crashed near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan.

"THE PLANE WAS RENDERED UNCONTROLLABLE BY RADIO-ELECTRONIC MEANS"

Aliyev reported that the Azerbaijani civil passenger plane was "struck from outside in Russian airspace, near the city of Grozny," stating that "the plane became uncontrollable due to radio-electronic means, and the tail section was significantly damaged by gunfire from the ground."

"NO ONE WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT A FRIENDLY COUNTRY WOULD OPEN FIRE ON OUR PLANE"

Recalling that the initial cause of the crash was suggested to be a bird strike, Aliyev said, "Perhaps when the plane was struck, the pilot thought it was a bird strike. Because no one would think that a friendly country would open fire on our plane. However, unfortunately, some circles in Russia focused on this possibility (bird strike). One of the things that upset and surprised us was the Russian official authorities' claim of a gas cylinder explosion on the plane. This clearly indicated that the Russian side wanted to cover up the issue. Of course, our plane was accidentally shot down. There is no intentional act of terrorism here. Therefore, admitting guilt, apologizing to Azerbaijan, which is considered a friendly country, and making the incident public were necessary actions. Unfortunately, for the first three days, we heard nothing but absurd assumptions from Russia." he stated.

"WE CLEARLY SAW THAT THE ISSUE WAS BEING COVERED UP"

Aliyev expressed that he had no doubt that the incident would be thoroughly investigated, stating, "Russia proposed that the incident be investigated by the Interstate Aviation Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent States. We categorically rejected this. The reason is clear. Because it is no secret that this institution is predominantly composed of Russian officials and that Russian citizens are at the head of the institution. If we had seen that Russia took fair and adequate steps immediately after the accident, we might not have objected, but we clearly saw that the issue was being covered up." he stated.

"RUSSIA MUST APOLOGIZE AND PAY COMPENSATION"

Regarding his expectations from Russia, Aliyev said: "We clearly expressed our demands to the Russian side and communicated them officially. Firstly, the Russian side must apologize to Azerbaijan. Secondly, it must admit its guilt. Thirdly, it must punish the perpetrators, hold them criminally responsible, and pay compensation to the Azerbaijani state and the injured passengers and crew. These are our conditions. The first of these was already met yesterday. I hope our other conditions will also be accepted. All these conditions are fair. There is no extraordinary necessity or problem here, and they are based on international experience and normal human behavior. I hope our conditions will be accepted."