In the crash’s aftermath, Azerbaijan has unleashed rare and stinging criticism of Russia, with the country’s president saying Moscow’s response has caused “surprise, regret and rightful indignation.”

Azerbaijan's president said on Monday that Russia was "guilty" over the downing of an airline last month that Baku says was shot by Russian air defenses. An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 jet crash-landed in Kazakhstan on Dec.

President Aliyev has blamed Russia for the airliner’s downing, which killed 38 people. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev on Monday once again blamed Russian officials for the plane crash that killed 38 people on Christmas Day and called for them to be punished.

Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said Russia is behind the Christmas Day crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines plane in Kazakhstan, which killed 38 of the 67 people aboard. The motives of the incident remain unclear.

Following Azerbaijan's president calling for Moscow to accept blame for downing an Azerbaijani plane, there is growing public anger toward Russia for its apparent attempts to sidestep responsibility for the incident.

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized for the plane crash in Russian air space on Christmas Day that left 38 people dead in a statement that said Russia was targeting Ukrainian drones over the plane’s planned destination at the time, but stopped short of taking responsibility.

Early indications’ suggest Russia shot down an Azerbaijan Airlines flight that crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day, the White House said on Friday.

The extraction of flight data from the Brazilian-made Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed in Kazakhstan last month was completed at a lab run by Brazil's air force, according to a statement released by the entity on Monday.