Baku demanded action from Russia in connection with the AZAL plane crash.

The Russian Investigative Committee's announcement that the criminal case has been terminated has raised questions among Azerbaijani authorities, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said, adding that Baku expects Moscow to pay compensation.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev announced that documents were being prepared to file lawsuits in international courts regarding the downing of the AZAL plane, as Russia has not admitted guilt or punished those responsible for the deaths. Shortly thereafter, the Azerbaijani publication Minval published the names of the Russian military personnel involved in the downing of the AZAL plane, indicating that the commander of one of the divisions, who gave the order to shoot down the plane, was promoted after the disaster. On October 9, in Dushanbe, Vladimir Putin informed Ilham Aliyev that two missiles fired by the Russian air defense system did not directly hit the AZAL plane, but exploded several meters away. The preconditions for resolving the diplomatic crisis between Russia and Azerbaijan were Moscow's recognition of responsibility for the AZAL plane crash and the payment of compensation. Putin's statement in Dushanbe on this issue provided an opportunity to normalize relations in the interests of both sides, analysts noted. On the eve of the anniversary of the AZAL plane crash in Kazakhstan, a monument was unveiled in Grozny in memory of the victims.

The Russian Investigative Committee's dismissal of the criminal case into the AZAL plane crash raises serious questions for Azerbaijan.

The Russian Investigative Committee sent a letter to Azerbaijan following the results of its investigation into the AZAL plane crash, the contents of which have raised eyebrows, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov said, Report reported today.

"The letter stated that the criminal case had already been dismissed. Of course, such a move raises very serious questions for us," Bayramov noted. He added that an official response from the relevant Azerbaijani authorities had been sent to this letter.

He emphasized that Azerbaijan expects Russia to fulfill its obligations in connection with this incident.

"Yesterday was the anniversary of the tragedy, and I express my condolences to the families of the victims. The fact that the plane was shot down was later acknowledged by the Russian side, and compensation was announced. This was an important statement. We expect this process to be completed," the minister emphasized.

As a reminder, on December 28, 2024, Vladimir Putin called Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and apologized "due to the fact that the tragic incident" involving the AZAL (Azerbaijan Airlines) plane "occurred in Russian airspace." On December 29, Aliyev publicly demanded that Russia admit responsibility for the plane crash, and on January 6, he criticized the Russian authorities for refusing to admit guilt and demanded that those responsible for the crash be punished. Ethnic raids in Russia and retaliatory detentions of Russians in Azerbaijan marked a new turn in the deterioration of relations between the two countries. Baku accuses Russian authorities of extrajudicial reprisals against Azerbaijanis, and footage of the brutal detention of Russians in Baku appears to be a demonstrative response to Moscow's actions, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "Crisis in Relations between Azerbaijan and Russia."

Ethnic raids in Russia and retaliatory detentions of Russians in Azerbaijan marked a new turn in the deterioration of relations between the two countries. Baku accuses Russian authorities of extrajudicial killings of Azerbaijanis, and footage of the brutal detention of Russians in Baku appears to be a demonstrative response to Moscow's actions, according to the "Caucasian Knot" report "Crisis in Azerbaijan-Russia Relations".

On June 28, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry called on Russian authorities to investigate the deaths and injuries of Azerbaijanis who suffered as a result of a special operation by security forces in Yekaterinburg on June 27. Experts in Baku named blunt force trauma as the cause of death for brothers Huseyn and Ziyaddin Safarov, while the Russian side cited a heart attack. On June 30, Azerbaijani security forces searched the office of the Russian news agency Sputnik Azerbaijan and detained two people, calling them agents of the Russian special services; they were arrested. Also on July 1, a court arrested eight Russian citizens detained on charges of drug trafficking and cybercrime.

On October 10, it was announced that Sputnik Azerbaijan Executive Director Igor Kartavykh and one of the Azerbaijanis arrested in Russia were released. The decision was agreed upon before the meeting between Putin and Aliyev in Dushanbe.

Materials on the deterioration of relations between the two countries have been collected by the "Caucasian Knot" on the thematic page "The Collapse of Ties between Baku and Moscow".