The U.S. National Security Council spokesperson, John Kirby, stated that the evidence related to the Azerbaijan Airlines crash goes beyond the widely circulated images of the aircraft wreckage.

Evidence suggests that the Azerbaijan Airlines flight that crashed in Kazakhstan on Christmas Day was shot down by Russia, the White House announced on Friday.

“We have observed some preliminary indications. There is a possibility that this aircraft was brought down by Russian air defense systems,” Kirby, the National Security Council spokesperson, told reporters. He clarified that the evidence is not limited to the widely shared images of the wreckage but did not provide additional details.

Earlier the same day, the airline stated that the plane crashed "due to external physical and technical interference," according to the preliminary findings of the investigation.

"This is evidenced by the appearance of the plane's wreckage on the ground and eyewitness testimony," said Azerbaijan's Minister of Digital Development and Transport, Rashad Nabiyev, as cited by Azerbaijani media. "The type of weapon used for this interference will be determined by the investigation."

Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 departed from Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, shortly before 8 a.m. local time on Wednesday, bound for Grozny, the capital of Chechnya in Russia. The plane was diverted mid-flight over Grozny and later crashed near Aktau, in southwestern Kazakhstan.