Baku Rejects Moscow's Statement on Downed AZAL Plane

The statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry on September 4 regarding the issue of insurance payments related to the crash of the "Azerbaijan Airlines" (AZAL) plane, which was shot down as a result of an attack, not only causes surprise but also misleads the public. This was stated by Aykhan Hajizada, the head of the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan.

The insurance payments for AZAL and the passengers, which are being carried out by an insurance company registered in Russia, and the issue of compensation demanded by Azerbaijan from the Russian government are completely different topics, he noted.

The process of organizing the said insurance payments by the mentioned company has been ongoing for about six months. In general, these payments are made exclusively within the framework of AZAL's insurance contract and are the fulfillment of obligations arising from the insurance of the aircraft and passengers.

As for the fact that the payments are made by a Russian insurance company, we should note that aircraft insurance is usually done through relevant international insurance companies. However, given that international insurance companies do not operate in the territory of Russia, the insurance of the AZAL aircraft was carried out through a Russian company.

Thus, attempts to equate the insurance payments with the compensation claim presented by Azerbaijan to the Russian government are inappropriate, Baku stated.

Hajizada also denies Baku's share of the blame for the problems that have arisen in Russian-Azerbaijani relations. He stressed that it started with the downing of the Azerbaijani plane and continued and deepened due to the persecution of Azerbaijanis in Russia.