Bulgarian, Albanian leaders express condolences to Azerbaijan following tragic plane crash

The President of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, has expressed his condolences to Azerbaijan following the tragic crash of an Azerbaijan Airlines (AZAL) aircraft near the Kazakh city of Aktau.

Radev shared his heartfelt message on the social media platform X, Caliber.Az reports.

"Bulgaria mourns the victims of the passenger plane crash of Azerbaijan Airlines in Kazakhstan. I express my sincere condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic incident and wish a speedy recovery to the injured," he stated.

Similarly, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama also extended his condolences to both Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. In a post on X, Rama wrote, "On behalf of Albania, I extend my deepest condolences to our grieving friends and brotherly countries – Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan."

The incident occurred on December 25, when an Embraer aircraft of Azerbaijan Airlines, en route from Baku to Grozny, crashed near Aktau. The aircraft was carrying 67 passengers, including 42 citizens of Azerbaijan, 16 from Russia, 6 from Kazakhstan, and 3 from Kyrgyzstan. According to the latest reports, 32 individuals survived the crash.

In response to the tragedy, Azerbaijan has declared December 26 a day of mourning.

By Aghakazim Guliyev