Azerbaijan is preparing an international lawsuit against Russia due to an aircraft catastrophe

21.07.2025 | International news

President Ilham Aliyev announced the preparation of legal actions against the Russian Federation due to an incident with a passenger plane, insisting on full responsibility and financial compensation.

Снимка от Katsuhiko Tokunaga/SuperJet International, Wikimedia Commons, под CC BY-SA 2.0

At the III Shushi Global Forum, the head of state of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, presented a categorical position regarding the plane crash affecting the national carrier "Azerbaijan Airlines" (AZAL). The President emphasized the country's determination to seek international justice, regardless of the potentially lengthy legal process.

In his official statement, Aliyev emphasized that seven months of silence from the Russian side is unacceptable. He categorically rejected alternative versions of the incident's origin, describing speculations about a Ukrainian drone as "kindergarten stories".

The head of state formulated clear claims to the Russian authorities: official acknowledgment of responsibility, punishment of the direct perpetrators, payment of compensation to affected families, and compensation for the loss of the aircraft.

Aliyev drew a parallel with the previous case of the downed Malaysian Boeing over Donbas in 2014, demonstrating readiness to wait the necessary time to achieve justice. The President emphasized his confidence that he has irrefutable evidence about the circumstances of the tragedy.

The international community will follow with interest the development of this precedent case, which may have serious diplomatic and legal consequences between the two countries.