Aykhan Hajizade: The statement of the Russian Foreign Ministry regarding insurance payments for the AZAL aircraft is surprising

Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (MFA RF) from September 4 regarding insurance payments in connection with the crash of the ZAO Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) aircraft, not only causes surprise but also misleads the public.

As reported by BAKU.WS, this was stated in a comment by the press secretary of Azerbaijan's foreign policy department, Aykhan Hajizade.

He emphasized the fundamental difference between two issues: payments by the Russian insurance company to AZAL airline and passengers on one hand, and Azerbaijan's demand for state compensation from the Russian government in connection with the downed aircraft on the other.

"The process of insurance payments by the Russian company has been ongoing for six months. These payments are made exclusively within the framework of the insurance contract with AZAL," noted Hajizade.

"Usually, aircraft insurance is carried out through relevant international insurance companies. However, considering that no international insurance company currently operates in Russia, AZAL aircraft insurance was conducted through a Russian company.

In this regard, the Azerbaijani side considers the attempts of the Russian Foreign Ministry to equate current insurance payments with the compensation that Azerbaijan demands from the Russian government as incorrect," added the press secretary.

Additionally, the statement of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry refutes the position of Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, who presented the arrest of 13 Russian citizens in Azerbaijan in July this year as the main reason for the deterioration of bilateral relations. The Russian side also put forward the release of these individuals as a condition for normalizing relations.

"It is known that the tension in Azerbaijani-Russian relations was caused precisely by the crash of the AZAL aircraft as a result of it being shot down and the subsequent behavior of Russian officials," the comment emphasizes.

Hajizade also pointed to additional factors that exacerbated tensions: persecution of Azerbaijanis in Russia on ethnic grounds, cases of beating and killing of Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg, as well as the activities of various state structures of the Russian Federation directed against the interests of Azerbaijan.