Russia's Foreign Ministry Responds to Azerbaijan's Complaints and Statements

Russia's Foreign Ministry has provided detailed clarifications regarding the insurance payments related to the crash of an "Azerbaijan Airlines" passenger aircraft near Aktau, Kazakhstan, on December 25, 2024. The data and figures presented have not raised any objections; they are facts. This was stated in a statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

It is also strange to hear the thesis that the "position of the Russian Foreign Ministry's press secretary, who stated that the arrest of 13 Russian citizens in Azerbaijan last July was, allegedly, the reason for the deterioration of Russian-Azerbaijani relations, and has suggested their release as a condition for improving relations".

We have persistently tried to find the "press secretary of the Foreign Ministry" who would say that, but we could not find anyone.

On September 4 of this year, during a weekly briefing held in the "media room" of the Eastern Economic Forum, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Zakharova, literally stated the following: "We emphasize: the release of Russian citizens is an important step towards the normalization of relations between Russia and Azerbaijan. The topic was thoroughly discussed at the meeting of the Russian-Azerbaijani intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation held on August 22 in Astrakhan. Russia's position has been presented in detail to the Azerbaijani delegation.

At the same time, we would like to draw attention to the fact that the international investigation into the circumstances of the passenger aircraft crash, conducted by the Republic of Kazakhstan with the participation of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Azerbaijan, has not yet been completed. No one should doubt that our country is striving to clarify the circumstances of the tragedy and is making every possible effort to restore the complete picture of what happened,” stated the Russian Foreign Ministry.