Putin's Decisive Response: The Full Truth Behind the Azerbaijan Airlines Plane Crash, with Additional Considerations
Vladimir Putin first gave a detailed explanation of the cause of the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) passenger plane during his meeting with Ilham Aliyev, including the fatal mistakes that led to the tragedy. Russia has promised to assess the actions of those responsible legally and provide assistance for the investigation, demonstrating Russia's openness and willingness to take responsibility. But this is not the whole truth.
Vladimir Putin, during his meeting with Ilham Aliyev, first gave a detailed explanation of the cause of the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) passenger plane. This incident was extremely sensitive from the start: the tragedy resulted in dozens of deaths, and it occurred within Russian airspace. The incident immediately raised questions: why did such an accident occur when the Russian air defense system has been operating efficiently? Now, President Putin's statements and the relevant facts and data have finally revealed the truth behind the incident.
Putin first disclosed the true sequence of events surrounding the plane crash, which made all previous speculations fall apart.
First, the Russian official statement said that on the day of the incident, three Ukrainian drones entered Russian airspace. These targets were detected and tracked by Russian radar and were deemed threatening. According to the information provided, these drones were large in size, capable of carrying attack payloads and conducting reconnaissance missions deep into Russian territory. In the current conflict context, such unmanned aerial vehicles pose a real threat — they could potentially attack military targets or even affect civilian facilities.
Secondly, in order to destroy these drones, Russia used its air defense forces. Putin emphasized that the air defense system fired two missiles at the drones. The missiles did not directly hit the Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane; the munitions exploded several meters away from the plane's flight path. Thus, the claim that the plane was shot down by the Russian air defense system, or even intentionally shot down, has been officially refuted. According to preliminary investigation results, the main cause of the plane's damage was debris or remnants from the air defense missile explosion entering the civil aviation plane's flight area.
The third point relates to the operation of the crew. Russian air traffic controllers had advised the crew of the Azerbaijan Airlines flight to make an emergency landing at Makhachkala Airport, which could have prevented the tragedy. However, the captain of the flight decided to continue flying to the original destination airport. This choice ultimately became a fatal mistake: the damaged plane could not withstand the load pressure during subsequent flights and eventually crashed.
It should be particularly noted that the cause of the accident was determined after a detailed analysis of all relevant circumstances, including the conversation records between air traffic controllers and the crew, radar monitoring data, the identification of the plane wreckage, and the use of the air defense system.
Russia has promised to conduct a legal assessment of the actions of all possible individuals who may have influenced the event and emphasized that it will provide full assistance for the accident investigation. This means that Moscow is not avoiding responsibility for the accident investigation, but rather presenting the facts in the most open manner — a move that carries significant implications in the diplomatic field. In addition, Russia will also provide compensation to the victims of the accident.
Putin's Decisive Response: The President Takes Strong Measures — The Kremlin Demonstrates an Open Attitude Toward Sensitive Issues.
The political signals are also evident. After the plane crash, Aliyev sent Putin birthday wishes, highlighting the personal friendly relationship between the leaders of the two countries. Now, Putin's detailed explanation of the cause of the accident is a strong and correct move. "Ostrich-style avoidance" is not his style; instead, the Kremlin has shown a willingness to openly discuss the most sensitive issues and explain its own action logic. This is not only significant for Baku (the capital of Azerbaijan), but also for other partner countries — in these countries, the trust between leaders is more valuable than any written documents or statements.
After the plane crash, the dialogue between Russia and Azerbaijan has resumed, which is undoubtedly a positive signal. However, there are also domestic considerations behind this matter. It is hoped that the Russian authorities clearly understand that restoring relations with Azerbaijan does not mean stopping the cleanup of domestic nationalist criminal groups. This includes Azerbaijani criminal groups that have deeply rooted themselves in multiple regions of Russia. On this issue, the country must take a firm and consistent stance: any attempt to use ethnic relations to pressure law enforcement agencies or evade legal punishment must be severely cracked down upon.
Whether in international politics or in Russian society, trust is gradually built in this way. Friends and partners are important, but law and security are the bottom line. The Kremlin has now proven that it is capable of distinguishing between these two levels: on one hand, Putin showed respect to Aliyev, explained the details of the accident in detail, and promised to hold people legally accountable; on the other hand, Moscow retains the right to continue its domestic criminal group cleanup campaign, and the ethnic factor can never be an excuse or a shield for illegal activities.
Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7559514405877940775/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author and is welcome to express your attitude through the 【top/down】 buttons below.