Even a direct statement of "I made a mistake" is still just a statement of fact, not an apology. An apology would be, "I made a mistake AND I APOLOGIZE", or "I made a mistake AND I AM SORRY".
THAT is the bit that has either "been carefully leached out of" these guys -- or maybe they never acquired it in the first place.
(This may go to the very bottom of who -- what -- they are.)