Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev is pressuring Vladimir Putin to acknowledge Russia's responsibility for the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane crash. He accuses Russian representatives of attempting to "cover up the incident,

"We can clearly say today that the plane was shot down by Russia," President Ilham Aliyev said in a televised statement

Putin and Aliyev are similar in many ways – authoritarian-minded, intolerant of criticism and firmly in charge of their respective governments. In recent years they have significantly expanded bilateral relations.

By Nailia Bagirova and Anton Kolodyazhnyy BAKU/MOSCOW (Reuters) -Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday that a passenger plane that crashed last week, killing 38 people, had been damaged by accidental shooting from the ground in Russia,

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed last week was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally.

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has called on Russia to accept blame for a plane crash on Christmas Day that killed 38 people. The plane is thought to have come under fire from Russian air defence systems as it tried to land in Chechnya before being diverted to Kazakhstan,

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday (December 29) that he wanted Russia to accept it was guilty of downing a passenger plane that crashed last week, killing 38 people, adding that some in Russia had lied about the cause of the disaster.

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev said Sunday that the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed last week was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally. Aliyev told Azerbaijani state television the aircraft was hit by fire from the ground over Russia and rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare.

Russia shot at an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane “by accident” on Dec. 25, leading to the aircraft’s crash, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told state TV on Sunday.

Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev has accused Russia of shooting down a plane that crashed on Christmas Day, killing 38 people.

Putin’s forces launch dozens of drones in latest aerial assault - Vladimir Putin faces mounting pressure to admit responsibility for Azerbaijan plane crash in Kazakhstan