In the crash’s aftermath, Azerbaijan has unleashed rare and stinging criticism of Russia, with the country’s president saying Moscow’s response has caused “surprise, regret and rightful indignation.”

Azerbaijan Airlines flight J2-8243 caught fire as it tried to make an emergency landing in Aktau, southwestern Kazakhstan, on Wednesday. It was traveling from the Azeri capital Baku to Grozny, the capital of the Russian republic of Chechnya.

The Russian authorities have sent guidelines to the media, advising journalists to ignore any mention of the downing of an AZAL aircraft in Aktau. The case should be referred to as a tragic incident,

The voice recorders from the Brazilian-made plane were analyzed in Brasilia before the data was handed to Kazakh authorities. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan has directed unusually strong words towards Moscow.

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev says the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed last week was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally.

The extraction of flight data from the Brazilian-made Azerbaijan Airlines plane that crashed in Kazakhstan last month was completed at a lab run by Brazil's air force, according to a statement released by the entity on Monday.

Azerbaijan’s leader on Monday accused Moscow of carrying out a “cover up” over a passenger jet crash last month that claimed 38 lives, as relations sour between the two neighbors.

"The blame for this disaster lies with representatives of the Russian Federation," Ilham Aliyev said on Jan. 6.