World leaders offer condolences over Russian plane crash

World leaders are offering condolences to Russia in the wake of the accident at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport, which claimed dozens of lives.

"On behalf of the people of Azerbaijan and on my own behalf, I express sincere condolences to you, relatives and friends of those who died in the accident and the entire people of Russia. I wish a speedy recovery to those who were injured," Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev wrote in his message to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

"On behalf of the Lithuanian government, I express my deep condolences on the loss of life during the plane crash," the press service of Lithuanian Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis quotes him as saying.

"I heard the news of the plane crash at Sheremetyevo, which resulted in loss of life, with deep sadness and regret. On behalf of Moldova’s people and on my own behalf, I offer our deep sympathies and solidarity to the Russian president and the whole of the Russian people," Moldovan President Igor Dodon said in his message.

For his part, Kyrgyz President Sooronbay Jeenbekov asked the Russian leader "to convey heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of those who died in the tragedy and speedy recovery wishes to all those injured." "We share the anguish of the irreparable loss," he added.

"Our condolences to the families of the victims of the passenger plane fire in Russia. We wish speedy recovery to the wounded," the Romanian Foreign Ministry said in a Twitter post.

"We learned about the loss of life in a plane crash, which occurred at Sheremetyevo Airport last night, with deep sadness. We share the grief of the Russian people and government, offer our condolences to the families of the victims and wish a speedy recovery to those injured," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"Our sincere condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the tragedy at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport, where the fire claimed the lives of many passengers and crewmembers of an Aeroflot plane. Serbian citizens are mourning together with their Russian friends," Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic tweeted.

"I am deeply saddened by the news of an accident during the landing of a passenger plane at Sheremetyevo airport, which killed dozens. While offering our heartfelt condolences to you and the entire friendly people of Russia, I ask to convey our feelings of empathy to the relatives and friends of those who died [in the tragedy]," Tajikistan’s President Emomali Rahmon wrote in his message to Vladimir Putin.

"We are saddened by the plane crash in Moscow, which claimed 41 lives. We express our condolences and solidarity to the Russian people and government on that tragedy," Bolivian President Evo Morales tweeted.

"I share the anguish of loss with the relatives and friends of those who died in the accident," Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev tweeted.

"Our condolences to the people and government of the Russian Federation on the loss of lives in the aircraft accident in Moscow, which we also make extensive to the relatives of the victims," Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez wrote in a Twitter post.

"My deep condolences to relatives and friends of the people who died in Aeroflot aircraft fire in Moscow," Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics tweeted.

The European Union has also sent condolences to the families and friends of those killed in a plane crash at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Maja Kocijancic said.

"The EU sends its condolences to the families and friends of those killed in the tragic accident at Sheremetyevo airport and wishes a speedy recovery to those injured," the statement reads.

The authorities of Russia’s Murmansk region have declared three days of mourning after a plane crash at Sheremetyevo airport.

Aeroflot’s Sukhoi Superjet 100 passenger plane (flight SU-1492) carrying 73 passengers and five crewmembers that was bound for Murmansk caught fire after emergency landing at Sheremetyevo shortly after its takeoff on Sunday. A total of 41 people, including two children, died in the plane fire, while nine people were hospitalized.