WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — U.S. officials tell NewsNation evidence indicates Russian air defenses downed the Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.
The passenger jet flying from Azerbaijan to Russia crashed while trying to make an emergency near Aktau. The flight had been en route from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, to Grozny in Russia, but was diverted due to fog.
The U.S. officials added that if the preliminary information proves to be true, it would further underscore Russian recklessness in its invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian government on Thursday warned against spreading “hypotheses” about the cause of the crash.
“The investigation is underway,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “And until investigators make their conclusions, it would be incorrect to make any kind of hypothesis. So, we cannot do it and nobody should do it. We must await the end of this investigation.”
Azerbaijan observed a nationwide day of mourning on Thursday. National flags were lowered across the country, traffic across the country stopped at noon, and signals were sounded from ships and trains.
Speaking at a news conference Wednesday, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that the weather had forced the plane to change from its planned course.
