Attempts to use the tragedy of the Azerbaijani AZAL plane crash to worsen relations between Russia and Azerbaijan are doomed to fail, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told a briefing, TASS reports.
"We understand very well that the tragedy of the plane crash, which claimed the lives of both citizens of Azerbaijan and citizens of our country, is being felt very acutely both there and in our country," the diplomat said. "Attempts to drive wedges between peoples, countries, which have such a common history and area of responsibility, including regional, such prospects for development, are doomed to failure," Zakharova pointed out.
According to the diplomat, Russia is concerned about the information campaign on Russia-Azerbaijan relations that is sweeping the media space. "It is obvious that it is being spurred on by someone," she emphasized. "It is obvious that there are also those who want to play around with the plane crash. I think that all these attempts to move from the existing nature of the relationship to something else will be doomed to failure," she added.
"The level of our interaction, the depth and wisdom of our peoples will allow us to overcome this challenge as well," the spokeswoman concluded.
The Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on December 25, 2024. The plane carried 67 people, including 62 passengers, mainly citizens of Azerbaijan, as well as nationals of Russia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan, and five crew members. According to the latest reports, 38 people, including seven Russians, were killed, while 29 others survived. The investigation into the causes of the crash is being conducted by the Kazakh authorities, who earlier said they had given the Russian and Azerbaijani sides access to the investigation materials. The flight recorders of the crashed plane have been decoded in Brazil, the country where the plane was manufactured.
