In a Joint statement, Russia and Azerbaijan agreed on compensation for the AZAL plane crash.

• Russia and Azerbaijan have settled the consequences of the crash of the AZAL Embraer 190, including compensation.
• This was stated in a joint statement by the two countries' Foreign Ministries.
• An AZAL Embraer 190 aircraft, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed on December 25, 2024, near the Kazakh city of Aktau.
• There were 67 people on board, of whom 38 died.
• On that day, three Ukrainian drones were operating in Russian airspace and were being tracked by the airline's air defense system.
• The aircraft may have been damaged by missile debris, which the pilot mistook for a flock of birds.

On April 15, the Foreign Ministries of Azerbaijan and Russia issued a joint statement in connection with the crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) passenger plane on December 25, 2024, near Aktau, Kazakhstan, which killed 38 people.

The statement stated that "the parties have reached an appropriate settlement of the consequences, including the issue of compensation." No further details, including the amount of compensation, were provided.

"The parties have reached an appropriate resolution to the consequences, including the payment of compensation, of the crash of the Embraer 190 aircraft belonging to AZAL near the city of Aktau on December 25, 2024, as a result of an unintentional air defense system strike in the airspace of the Russian Federation," the document states.

The statement emphasizes that the steps taken confirm their mutual commitment to further building allied cooperation.

The Foreign Ministries of both countries reiterated their deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims. The parties expressed confidence that the development of Russian-Azerbaijani ties will contribute to strengthening good-neighborly relations.

Agreements on a settlement were reached during a meeting between the presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan in Dushanbe on October 9, 2025.

The Embraer 190 was flying from Baku to Grozny when it was damaged in mid-air over Russia. The airliner managed to fly over the Caspian Sea and reach Aktau, where it crashed on approach. Thirty-eight people died in the crash, with 29 surviving.

Azerbaijan sources reported that a missile fired by a Russian air defense system was the cause of the crash, and the pilots were not allowed to land at any Russian airport , despite their requests for an emergency landing. The aircraft was ordered to fly over the Caspian Sea toward Aktau, and its navigation systems were jammed.

Initially, Russian authorities did not comment on the air defense system's involvement. In December 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and acknowledged that the incident occurred in Russian airspace, where air defense systems were operating.

• In October 2025, during a meeting with Aliyev in Dushanbe, Putin acknowledged that the Azerbaijani aircraft had been damaged by Russian air defenses and promised compensation.
• Putin claimed that Russian air defenses had targeted three Ukrainian drones and then fired two missiles, which exploded a few meters from the plane. He claimed that the crew had been offered the option of landing in Makhachkala.
• In December 2025, the Kazakh Ministry of Transport published an "interim report" on the progress of the investigation into the causes of the air crash, stating that "the damage to the aircraft was presumably caused by the warhead's striking elements, but their origin could not be determined."
• Azerbaijan insisted on handing over the flight recorders to Brazil, the country where the plane was manufactured, despite all proposals to hand over the black boxes to the Interstate Aviation Committee (in which case Russia would de facto take over the investigation of the air crash).

Earlier, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev had publicly blamed Russia for the plane crash and demanded "humane behavior" and compensation from its leadership.

Following the incident, the Azerbaijani side insisted on a full admission of guilt, compensation, and punishment for those responsible. Aliyev said that Baku intended to file a lawsuit against Moscow.

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