MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev discussed the 2024 crash of Azerbaijani Airlines flight 8243 in a phone call on Friday.

According to a Kremlin statement, the leaders discussed "a number of pressing issues on the bilateral agenda," building on a conversation that began on October 9 at the Commonwealth of Independent States summit in Dushanbe.

During their earlier meeting, Putin had apologized to Aliyev for the tragedy and stated that the investigation was nearing completion.

The Kremlin further noted that the two leaders "reaffirmed mutual commitment to further developing trade and economic ties, implementing joint projects in energy and transportation-logistics sectors."

In addition, they discussed specific aspects of regional cooperation and international developments, agreeing to maintain contacts at various levels.