Zelensky instructed to share intelligence with partners regarding the crash of the Azerbaijani plane.

The head of state discussed this during an evening video address.

Zelensky emphasized that he has no doubt: Russia will not be able to hide the full truth about the plane crash. According to him, partners whom Azerbaijan can primarily trust are currently involved in the investigation.

The head of state also stressed that Ukraine will provide "all necessary assistance." In particular, intelligence data that Zelensky has instructed to share with partners.

“We call on everyone to support Azerbaijan in this situation. And every country — to pressure Russia to stop the lies about this disaster — the same kind of lies as those about MH-17, the Boeing shot down over Donetsk region,” Zelensky emphasized.

Recall that on December 28, Vladimir Zelensky called his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev to express condolences regarding the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash. In the conversation with the Azerbaijani leader, the Ukrainian president noted the heroism of the crew, who managed to bring the plane down on Kazakh territory and saved 29 people.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin also spoke with Aliyev. He apologized for the plane crash but did not mention that a Russian missile might have struck the aircraft.

What happened to the plane?

On December 25, the Azerbaijan Airlines plane was operating a flight from the capital of Azerbaijan, Baku, to the Russian city of Grozny (Chechen Republic). However, after changing its route several times, it crashed near Kazakhstan's Aktau. As a result, 38 people died on board.

Preliminary reports from Rosaviation suggested that the accident occurred due to a bird strike. According to Grozny airport, the plane was redirected to Makhachkala due to fog and then to Aktau. However, analysts consider these explanations questionable.

Although there was indeed fog over the region that morning, the Grozny airport was temporarily closed due to the declaration of the "Carpet" plan in light of drone attacks. The monitoring portal Flightradar24 stated that after approaching the Grozny area, the flight path data of the plane was distorted — likely due to GPS signal jamming and data spoofing.

Additionally, social media circulated footage of the tail section of the plane — the fuselage shows marks resembling damage from shrapnel. OSINT analysts claimed that they looked like traces from the Pantsir air defense system. Other bloggers suggested that these could have been damage from stones during the crash.

Kazakh media, citing the health department of the Mangistau region, reported that an explosion occurred on board. Survivors of the crash also spoke of an explosion. The police have opened a criminal case regarding the plane crash.

In Russia and Kazakhstan, there have been calls to avoid rushing to conclusions. Meanwhile, according to media reports, preliminary investigations in Azerbaijan indicate that the cause of the crash is a Russian missile that may have been launched to counter drone attacks. This is also asserted by Kyrylo Budanov, head of the GUR of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

According to Reuters, Azerbaijan does not claim that the plane was shot down intentionally, but they expect "acknowledgments" from the Russian side.