The Azerbaijani carrier Azerbaijan Airlines announced that the cause of the plane crash in Aktau, Kazakhstan, was "external physical and technical interference." Earlier, there were accusations against Russia of using anti-aircraft defences in connection with Ukrainian drone attacks.

A preliminary investigation confirms that a Russian surface-to-air missile caused the plane crash on Wednesday in western Kazakhstan, Euronews reported on Thursday, citing sources in the Azerbaijani government.

An Azerbaijan Airlines statement on Dec. 27 blamed “interference” for the Christmas Day plane crash that killed 38 people.

The Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed experienced "external physical and technical interference," the airline says.

General Kyrylo Budanov from Ukrainian military intelligence claims that an Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer-190 was shot down over Russia, resulting in at least 38 deaths. The Embraer-190 belonging to Azerbaijan Airlines crashed near the city of Aktau in western Kazakhstan.

Azerbaijan’s flag carrier has announced the suspension of flights to several Russian airports, citing potential flight safety risks following a crash of one of its planes that many experts have blamed

"No one claims that it was done on purpose," an Azerbaijan official told Reuters. They added their government "expects the Russian side to confess."

Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Russia all opened investigations into the cause of the crash of Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243.