Iran asked US for help after plane crash, but Washington was 'unable'

Matthew Miller, spokesman for the US Department of State (Getty Images)

The Iranian government reached out to the United States for assistance following the plane crash involving President Ebrahim Raisi, but Washington was "unable to provide that assistance", citing the US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller.

"We were asked for assistance by the Iranian government. We did make clear to them that we would offer assistance, as we would do in response to any request by a foreign government in this sort of situation," Miller said.

The State Department spokesperson added that the US ultimately could not assist Iran due to logistical reasons.

When asked whether the US was concerned that Tehran might blame Washington for the Iranian president's death, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin denied any connection between the US and the plane crash.

Death of Iranian President

On May 19, Iranian media reported that Raisi's helicopter made a hard landing after returning from a visit to Azerbaijan. It was later revealed that Tehran had organized a search and rescue operation to locate the crash site.

By May 20, information began to emerge that rescuers had found the helicopter, but none of the passengers survived. Later, Iran's Vice President confirmed Raisi's death. Among the deceased were other high-ranking officials.