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Akbar Novruz

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In light of the ongoing tension between Baku and Moscow, the Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement regarding the Azal plane crash that occurred in Aktau on December 25, 2024. Perhaps the statement is a case study in deflection.

Issued with characteristic indignation, it meticulously details the billions of rubles paid to AZAL and the millions distributed to affected passengers’ families. Yet, for all its numerical rigor, the statement avoids the question at the heart of the matter: who is responsible for this tragedy, and who will be held accountable?

Insurance payments are not acts of goodwill; they are contractual obligations. Just as car insurance reimburses a policyholder after an accident, AZAL’s policy with ‘AlfaStrakhovanie’ guarantees financial coverage for damages following the crash. These payments, governed by the Montreal Convention of 1999, are technical procedures designed to limit financial risk. This is Azal's legal right; all these standards are implemented in every country, by every airline. They do not, and cannot, substitute for state responsibility.

Compensation, on the other hand, is a matter of accountability. Under the 2001 UN General Assembly resolution on “Responsibility of States for Internationally Wrongful Acts,” a state is obliged to repair the damage caused by the wrongful actions of its organs. In this case, Russian military personnel shot down a civilian aircraft, and Azerbaijan seeks not just reimbursement, but recognition of liability, justice for the victims, and proper restitution for the nation.

Aykhan Hajizadeh, head of the Press Service Department of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, clarified this distinction in response to Moscow’s statements. “Attempts to equate insurance payments with compensation demanded by Azerbaijan from the Russian government are incorrect,” he said, adding that it is wrong to present the arrest of Russian citizens in Azerbaijan as the reason for strained relations. The core issue remains the downing of the AZAL plane and the subsequent inaction by Russian authorities, compounded by the persecution of Azerbaijanis in Russia and other aggressive measures by Russian state bodies.

Yet, the Russian narrative persists: payments are made, accusations are leveled against Azerbaijani media and bloggers, and this is invoked to dismiss inconvenient questions. The truth is simpler and harder: insurance settles a contractual obligation. Compensation demands accountability. They are not interchangeable. One is bookkeeping; the other is justice.

Moscow must stop blurring the lines, confusing insurance with compensation, denying guilt, and stifling scrutiny, if it wants to achieve genuine normalization of relations with Azerbaijan. The tragedy of the AZAL crash is not simply an insurance issue; it is a pressing matter of international responsibility that Russia cannot evade any longer.

For Azerbaijan, the way forward is unmistakable: it must firmly advocate for acknowledgment of liability, seek compensation in accordance with international law, and ensure that those responsible face justice. To accept anything less would not only fail the victims and their families but also underscore a troubling reality, that financial compensation alone, such as insurance payouts, cannot truly mend the deep scars left by preventable tragedies. Justice must be pursued not just as a formality, but as a moral imperative for a community yearning for closure and accountability.