Russia’s Overchuk discusses Iran conflict, AZAL crash, and bilateral relations with Aliyev
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksei Overchuk has visited Azerbaijan, where he thanked President Ilham Aliyev for evacuating Russians from Iran, and discussed the Azerbaijan Airlines crash of December 2024.
Aliyev received Overchuk on Monday.
During the meeting, Overchuk first thanked Aliyev for ‘providing prompt assistance’ in evacuating Russian nationals from Iran as it came under joint US–Israeli attacks.
According to the official statement about their meeting on the Azerbaijani presidential website, the two also discussed the deadly Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) crash in Aktau, Kazakhstan, stating that the two countries would soon ‘implement a range of practical steps’ to resolve the issue, in accordance with agreements reached between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Aliyev in Dushanbe, Tajikistan in October 2025.
Nate Ostiller
Aliyev and Putin’s meeting in Dushanbe was their first in-person meeting since the plane crash. During the meeting Putin publicly apologised for the deadly crash acknowledging that the incident, which claimed the lives of 38 people, had been caused by a Russian anti-aircraft missile.
The crash led to an apparent crisis in Azerbaijani–Russian relations, with Aliyev repeatedly accusing Russia of avoiding responsibility for the incident. He also demanded compensation for the dead passengers’ families, those injured in the crash, and for the downed plane.
Overchuk’s visit to Azerbaijan was preceded by statements made by Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov in December, in which he said that he had received a letter from Russia’s Investigative Committee announcing the ‘termination’ of the case involving the crash.
Russian coverage of Overchuk’s visit primarily focused on trade and economic cooperation between Russia and Azerbaijan.
According to TASS, Overchuk and Aliyev discussed the development of the North-South international transport corridor and joint investment projects.
‘Despite all the problems that have plagued relations between our countries in recent months, our trade and economic cooperation has remained unaffected and continued to develop steadily’, said Overchuk, according to TASS.
Overchuk added that the trade turnover between the countries almost reached $5 billion in 2025, which ‘is a very significant figure’.
Later, Overchuk met with his Azerbaijani counterpart, Shahin Mustafayev.
In that meeting, Mustafayev and Overchuk ‘focused on strengthening trade, economic, industrial, energy, transport, logistics, and agroindustrial cooperation’. They additionally discussed opportunities for mid-term and long-term joint investments and increasing cargo traffic between Azerbaijan and Russia.
