Reuters
Jan. 4, 2021



MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian military investigators are now treating the
Nov. 9 downing of a helicopter over Armenia as “wilful murder”, a more
serious charge than the previous “death through negligence”, Interfax
news agency reported on Monday, citing a source.

A Russian Mi-24 helicopter was shot down over Armenia near the border
with a region belonging to Azerbaijan, killing two crew members and
injuring another, just few hours before a Moscow-brokered peace deal
over Nagorno-Karabakh was reached.

Heavy fighting between Azerbaijan, which has the political backing of
Turkey, and ethnic Armenian forces over the mountainous region had
been raging for six weeks at the time of the incident.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said Azeri forces shot down the
helicopter by accident, expressing apologies to Moscow and a readiness
to pay compensation.


Interfax said on Monday, citing the source, that a case had initially
been opened into a potential infringement of flying regulations that
had resulted in deaths through negligence.

The reported switch to a murder charge, which could lead to a sentence
of life imprisonment for those held responsible, may complicate
relations between Moscow and Azerbaijan.

The conflict has tested Moscow’s influence in the South Caucasus, a
swath of the former Soviet Union it views as vital to defending its
own southern flank.

Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Editing by Hugh Lawson