Azerbaijan crash calls for a thorough probe

Russia’s statements over the downing of the Azerbaijani commercial aircraft last week throw up more questions than they answer about an incident in which 38 unsuspecting lives were lost. While President Vladimir Putin apologised to his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, the Russian readout on the conversation between the two leaders stopped short of assuming responsibility for incident. Instead, there was the insinuation that the plane could have been a collateral casualty in the face-off between Russian air defence systems and Ukrainian drones in the region. What really happened, and whether the plane was deliberately targeted or inadvertently shot down in the crossfire remains unclear.

The list of casualties in the Russia-Ukraine war is long and will grow longer till the war doesn’t decisively end, but this incident is deeply troubling for a clutch of reasons. First, it involves a nation that isn’t a party to the war. Second, it involves civilians who were simply travelling from one place to another in a commercial aircraft and the loss of life at this scale cannot be merely shrugged off as collateral damage. And, finally, if this was a deliberate act, then whatever the intent, it represents an unprecedented escalation in the war.

At a time when the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight MH 370 is being reinvestigated a decade after the incident — underscoring the imperative for closure and a conclusive investigation— the Azerbaijani crash should not remain shrouded in conjecture and finger-pointing. An independent probe is needed to establish cause and pin responsibility. A red line must be drawn — this is not acceptable.

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