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Vladimir Putin has apologized to Azerbaijan for what he described as a “terrible incident” involving an Azerbaijani airliner in Russian airspace on Christmas Day.
Moscow called Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev and the Russian president to express “deep and sincere condolences” to the families of those affected, the Kremlin's press office said on Saturday.
An Azerbaijan Airlines Embraer 190 was flying from Baku to Grozny on Christmas Day when it overturned over the Caspian Sea and crashed near Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 of the 67 people on board.
Senior US and Ukrainian officials blamed Russian anti-aircraft fire for the accident.
Although the Kremlin's statement on Saturday did not definitively confirm that Russia's air defense systems were responsible, it did not deny the allegation.
The plane “repeatedly tried to land at Grozny airport” while Ukrainian fighter drones were attacking nearby cities and the Russian air defense “responded to these attacks”, according to the Kremlin.
“Vladimir Putin has apologized for the tragic incident that took place in Russian airspace,” the statement said.
Russia's investigative committee has opened a criminal investigation into alleged violations of aviation security laws, “with civilian and military experts being questioned”, the report said.
Azerbaijani, Kazakh and Russian officials are already conducting an official investigation, led by Baku.
Putin's carefully worded admission is in stark contrast to Moscow's repeated denials of responsibility for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, which investigators say was caused by a surface-to-surface missile fired from territory held by Moscow's rebels in eastern Ukraine.
Russian air traffic controllers initially suggested that the crash was caused by a bird striking the plane's engine. Azerbaijan's president said he was told the plane had turned around due to bad weather.
On Friday John Kirby, a spokesman for the US National Security Council, said there were “early indications” that the plane had been hit by Russian air defenses. Rashad Nabiyev, the minister of transport of Azerbaijan, on the same day that the accident was caused by the impact of weapons.
Survivors, including passengers and crew, reported explosions outside the plane as it flew over Grozny.
On Thursday, the head of Russia's main air force, Dmitry Yadrov, admitted that the air conditions around Grozny were “very difficult” because of the attack by Ukrainian combat drones.
In response to the crisis, five airlines have suspended some flights to Russia.
Turkmenistan Airlines suspended its route from Ashgabat to Moscow while Azerbaijan Airlines, Kazakhstan's Qazaq Air and the UAE's Flydubai all suspended routes to southern Russia. Israel's El Al has suspended its Tel Aviv-to-Moscow route.
Additional reporting by Robert Wright in London