President Vladimir Putin on Saturday apologised to Azerbaijan's leader for what the Kremlin called a "tragic incident" over Russia in which an Azerbaijan Airlines plane crashed after Russian air defences were fired against Ukrainian drones.

In a phone call, Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized to the president of Azerbaijan, saying the "tragic incident occurred in Russia's airspace." Putin did not say Russia was responsible for the attack that killed 38 of the 67 people onboard.

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized for the plane crash in Russian air space on Christmas Day that left 38 people dead in a statement that said Russia was targeting Ukrainian drones over the plane’s planned destination at the time, but stopped short of taking responsibility.