The cause of the crash of Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 near the city of Aktau, Kazakhstan, is still unknown. The Kremlin has so far been tight-lipped, prompting questions over its messaging.

Moscow: The Kremlin on Saturday admitted to Azerbaijan that Russian missiles were hitting over Grozny airport in response to a Ukrainian drone attack on Wednesday but stopped short of saying that its rockets hit the plane that crashed with 62 onboard.

The leadership in Moscow on Friday refused to comment on claims that a Russian missile had caused Wednesday's crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet in Kazakhstan with the loss of 38 lives. Moscow was aware of statements made in Azerbaijan's capital Baku,

After 38 people died in the crash, some experts said the plane may have been accidentally shot by Russian air defense systems in an area where Ukrainian drone activity had been reported.

The Kremlin urged restraint on Thursday in speculating about the cause of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in Kazakhstan that killed 38 of the 67 passengers on board. "An investigation is currently under way;

Putin apologized for the “tragic incident” that occurred in Russian airspace, but the Kremlin did not take responsibility for downing the Azerbaijan Airlines flight.

By Guy Faulconbridge, Andrew Osborn and Nailia Bagirova MOSCOW/BAKU (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologised to Azerbaijan's leader for what the Kremlin called a "tragic incident" over Russia in which an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed after Russian air defences were fired against Ukrainian drones.

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized for the deadly Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 crash on Christmas but did not take responsibility for causing it as an investigation continues into the matter.

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologizes to Azerbaijani leader after the crash of an Azerbaijani airliner in Kazakhstan that killed 38 people.