Chinese leaders send condolences over Kazan air crash

BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang on Monday sent messages of condolences to Russia over the deadly air crash in the Russian republic of Tatarstan.

In his message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, Xi, on behalf of the Chinese government and people, expressed deep grief over the deaths and offered sincere condolences to the families of the victims.

Li also conveyed his grief and condolences in his message to Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

The crash, killing all 50 people on board, occurred at about 7:30 p.m. local time (1530 GMT) on Sunday in the airport of Kazan, capital city of the republic of Tatarstan.

Those killed include Irek Minnikhanov, a son of Tatarstan President Rustam Minnikhanov, and Alexander Antonov, head of the regional Federal Security Service.