The leader of Azerbaijan criticized the Russian response to the crash of a passenger jet that Azerbaijani officials said had most likely been hit by Russian air defenses.

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said Russia is behind the Christmas Day crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane in Kazakhstan, which killed 38 of the 67 people aboard. The motives of the incident remain unclear.

"Unfortunately, in the first three days we heard only absurd versions from Russia," President Ilham Aliyev said, citing statements in Russia that attributed the crash to a bird strike or the explosion of some sort of gas cylinder.

Russia's leader apologises over the downing of an Azerbaijani plane in Russian airspace - without directly taking blame.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said he was “upset and surprised” that Russian officials put forward murky causes instead of promptly taking responsibility.

In the crash’s aftermath, Azerbaijan has unleashed rare and stinging criticism of Russia, with the country’s president saying Moscow’s response has caused “surprise, regret and rightful indignation.”

We demand justice, we demand punishment for those responsible, we demand full transparency - said the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, regarding the plane crash caused by a Russian missile. He also accused Moscow of attempting to cover up the incident.

Azerbaijan's president has confronted Putin over the devastating plane crash that killed 38 people on Christmas Day.

We demand justice, we demand punishment for those responsible, and we demand full transparency, — said the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, regarding the plane crash caused by a Russian missile.