Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said the United States and Iran need to go down the ladder, without causing constant threats after the accidental shooting of a Ukrainian aircraft.

"The Ukrainian plane's accidental incident signaled a very dangerous situation, the parties need to start down the tensions ladder and do not pose a constant threat. The escalation of tensions between the US and Iran does not resolve any crisis in the because it only increases confrontation, "Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told a press conference in Moscow today.

Tensions between the United States and Iran escalated rapidly after the airstrike led to Major General Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), killed in Baghdad on January 3. Iran responded with a two-base missile strike on Iraq where US troops were stationed early on January 8, then mistakenly shot a Ukrainian passenger plane, killing 176 people.

Foreign Minister Lavrov insisted he did not "seek excuses for anyone", but criticized the US killing of General Soleimani. "Unprecedented US activity undermines and raises questions about standards imaginable in international law," Lavrov said.

Iran on January 11 admitted wrongly shooting a Ukrainian plane, calling it a "great tragedy" caused by human error. Foreign ministers of Britain, Afghanistan, Canada, Ukraine and Sweden on January 16 demanded that Iran organize an international investigation and compensate the families of the victims.

Canadian investigators went to Iran to check the plane was shot wrong and can participate in analysis of two black boxes. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the US contributed to escalating tensions with Iran, causing a Ukrainian plane to be shot down, killing 63 Canadian citizens.