Moscow expects that Ilham Aliyev's assurances to investigate and punish those responsible for the Mi-24 helicopter crash will be implemented as soon as possible, the Foreign Ministry said, commenting on the words of Azerbaijani Ambassador to Moscow Polad Bulbuloglu.
"If Russia had confessed the principle "à la guerre comme à la guerre" ("at war as at war"), the answer would have been crushing. In Moscow, Baku's words of guilt and apology were accepted," the Foreign Ministry said.
As emphasized on Smolenskaya Square, Moscow assumes that official Baku will no longer allow itself "ambiguous statements in connection with the tragic incident.
Earlier Thursday, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Moscow Polad Bulbuloglu said at a press conference in the "Russia Today" news agency, commenting on the destruction of the Russian Mi-24, that "anything can happen at war as at war".
The diplomat stressed that the commission was still working, there were no conclusions yet.
According to him, the helicopter flew at low altitude in the evening, so it was not on the radar.
Mi-24 helicopter, which was serving at the Russian military base in Armenia, was shot down on November 9 in the airspace above the territory of the republic outside the combat zone.
The crew commander, Major Yuri Ishchuk, and Senior Lieutenant Roman Fedin were killed.
Another crew member, the navigator, was injured.
Azerbaijan admitted that a Russian helicopter had been shot down by accident. Baku apologized and expressed readiness to pay compensation.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Creative Commons
Based on materials from RIA Novosti