Russia and Azerbaijan have revealed that an "appropriate settlement of consequences," including compensation payment, has been reached over the Azerbaijan Airlines airliner crash in December 2024.
Russia and Azerbaijan’s foreign ministries issued a joint statement regarding the December 2024 Azerbaijan Airlines tragedy, confirming that an agreement has been reached and that all outstanding issues are now resolved, including Russia's payment of compensation to the victims in Azerbaijan.
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According to the official statement, the presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia reached a settlement following a meeting in Tajikistan on 9 October 2025.
The statement notes that the bilateral relations “will continue to contribute to strengthening good-neighbourly relations and expanding cooperation in the interests of the peoples of the two countries."
On 25 December 2024, 38 people died, and 29 others were injured when Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8432 crashed near Aktau in Kazakhstan when a Russian missile targeted and struck close to the aircraft mid-flight, causing critical damage next to the Russian city of Grozny.
The Kremlin initially denied any involvement, but Baku and President Ilham Aliyev maintained that Moscow was responsible based on the results of initial investigations and witness testimony.
One day after the crash, Azerbaijani government sources told Euronews that the damaged aircraft had not been allowed to land at any Russian airport despite the pilots' requests, forcing it to cross the Caspian Sea and towards Kazakhstan.
Days after the tragedy, President Aliyev said that “we have clearly expressed our demands to the Russian side… First of all, the Russian side must apologise to Azerbaijan. Secondly, it must acknowledge its guilt. Thirdly, those responsible must be punished… and compensation must be paid.”
The tragedy spiralled into a major stumbling block in relations between Moscow and Baku.
Moscow initially denied any involvement and suggested the crash may have been caused by a bird strike. Russian President Vladimir Putin later apologised for the tragic crash but stopped short of acknowledging responsibility.
Almost one year on, the Russian president admitted that Russia's air defences alerted to possible Ukrainian drones above the Chechen capital were responsible for shooting down the aircraft, offering compensation.