Azerbaijan downed Russian helicopter by mistake and is ready to compensate Moscow for the damages, the Republic’s Foreign Ministry announced. (Image: illustration).

“The helicopter was flying in the close vicinity of the Armenian-Azerbaijani state border at the time of active hostilities in the zone of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The flight was taking place after dark, at a low altitude, outside the air defence radar detection zone. Helicopters of the Russian Armed Forces had not been detected in said area previously,” the Ministry stated. According to the ministry, “in the context of the aforementioned factors and in the light of the tense situation in the region and the high military alert due to possible provocations of the Armenian side, the on-duty operational crew made the decision to use deadly force.”