The statement is the closest officials have come to confirming mounting suspicions that the plane was downed by a Russian air-defense system.

It comes as the head of Russia's civil aviation agency says the situation in Grozny, the plane's destination, was "very complicated" at the time.

Airline says it has suspended flights to 10 Russian cities due to preliminary results of investigation - Anadolu Ajansı

Russian state media has maintained that the jet was rerouted due to poor weather conditions and claimed the crash may have been caused by a bird strike

Speculation surrounding the crash has heightened tensions, with reports suggesting a Russian air defense missile might have been involved.

Azerbaijan Airlines said "external physical and technical interference" led to the plane crash in Kazakhstan in which 38 people died out of 67 on board.

Experts say evidence in the Azerbaijan Airlines plane crash in Kazakhstan points to a possible midair explosion, not an encounter with a flock of birds.

Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev said on Sunday that the Azerbaijani airliner that crashed in Kazakhstan on Wednesday, killing 38 people, was shot down by Russia, albeit unintentionally.