Putin said the missiles fired by Russian air defences to target a Ukrainian drone exploded near the Azerbaijan Airlines plane flying from Baku as it was preparing to land in Grozny, the regional capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya, on December 25, 2024. Ukrainian drones have regularly struck deep inside Russia.

Speaking at a meeting with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev in Tajikistan’s capital of Dushanbe, where both were attending a summit of the former Soviet nations, Putin pledged to punish those responsible and provide compensation.

As part of his state visit to Tajikistan, Putin also sought to bolster relations with the Central Asian nation that neighbors Afghanistan and hosts a Russian military base.

Speaking at the start of his talks with Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rakhmon, who has been in power for nearly 33 years, surpassing Putin’s own quarter-century rule, the Russian leader praised the close military and security ties between Moscow and Dushanbe and noted that over one million Tajik citizens were working in Russia.

Later on Thursday, Putin held a summit with Rakhmon and the leaders of the four other Central Asian nations to discuss expanding trade and other contacts.

“Russia firmly intends to further strengthen its strategic partnership and alliance with your countries, and deepen mutually beneficial political, economic, and humanitarian ties,” Putin said.