Dushanbe: Following talks in Dushanbe with Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed hope that the “bad page” in relations with Azerbaijan, caused by tensions following the AZAL plane crash, has been finally turned, TASS reported.
According to Azerbaijan State News Agency, Putin discussed with Aliyev the potential for future cooperation in logistics and industrial sectors. The Russian leader emphasized the importance of moving forward without complications and implementing ambitious plans that both countries have. This statement came after a news conference held following Putin’s visit to Tajikistan, where he commented on the outcomes of his meeting with Aliyev on October 9.
The meeting in Dushanbe marked the first face-to-face interaction between Putin and Aliyev in several months, occurring on the sidelines of CIS events. A significant focus of their discussion was the crash of the Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) plane last December. Aliyev extended special gratitude to Putin for providing crucial information regarding the cause of the crash. The two leaders reportedly had a lengthy conversation lasting over an hour, culminating in an embrace during an informal meeting of CIS leaders the previous evening.
Previously, a full-scale bilateral meeting between Putin and Aliyev took place in October 2024, during the CIS Council of Heads of State. Additionally, they briefly conversed on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Tianjin, China. On October 7, Aliyev extended warm birthday wishes to Putin by telephone, marking the end of a more than six-month hiatus in direct communication between the two leaders.