OREANDA-NEWS Russia wants an objective investigation of the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane crash near Aktau. This is how Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov commented on the situation, TASS reports.

The press secretary of the Russian president noted that the necessary instructions have already been given to the investigative authorities. "We are interested in an absolutely objective, impartial investigation in order to determine the causes of this disaster," he said.

Peskov stressed that since the tragedy, Russian leader Vladimir Putin and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev have spoken on the phone twice. Moreover, Putin apologized and expressed his regret.

"All necessary assistance and cooperation are being provided in the investigation of the causes of this accident," the Kremlin spokesman said.

The Embraer 190 aircraft of AZAL Airlines, operating a Baku — Grozny flight, crashed near Aktau on the morning of December 25, 2024. There were 67 people on board, 38 of them did not survive.