Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russia of putting the lives of Ukrainian prisoners at risk following the crash of a military transport plane, which Moscow attributed to Ukraine.
The Ilyushin Il-76 crashed in the Russian border region of Belgorod on Wednesday, resulting in the deaths of everyone on board.
The Russian Ministry of Defence claimed that the plane was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) as part of a planned prisoner swap, along with six Russian crew members and three Russian soldiers.
Zelenskyy expressed his concern in his address on Wednesday evening, stating that “It is obvious that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners, with the feelings of their relatives and with the emotions of our society”.
He did not verify or refute Russia’s claims but acknowledged that it had been a “very difficult day”.
“We need to establish all the clear facts. As much as possible, given that the downing of the plane occurred on Russian territory, which is beyond our control,” he added.
The Russian Ministry of Defence reported that the plane was targeted while en route from a military aerodrome near Moscow to Belgorod.
Belgorod, located near the Ukrainian border, has been a recent target of Ukrainian air strikes. The ministry alleged that radars had detected the launch of two Ukrainian missiles but did not provide any evidence to support this claim.
The Ukrainian military later observed more Russian military transport aircraft landing in Belgorod, which they linked to ongoing Russian missile strikes on Kharkiv and other Ukrainian cities.
Responding to this, Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk stated, “Ukraine has the right to defend itself and destroy the means of the aggressors’ aerial attack.”
The Kremlin announced that it was investigating the reports on the plane, while Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called for an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council to determine “the reasons behind the Ukrainian criminal act”.
Zelenskyy also called for an international investigation into the crash, while Ukraine’s intelligence agency stated that it had no “reliable or comprehensive information” regarding the passengers on the plane.
Andriy Yusov, a representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence, mentioned that an exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine had been planned for Wednesday, but that it would not proceed.
The intelligence agency also highlighted that Ukraine had not been asked to ensure airspace security around Belgorod as in previous swaps and had not been informed about the means of transport to be used and the routes.
“On this basis, we may be talking about planned and deliberate actions by Russia to destabilise the situation in Ukraine and weaken international support for our state,” the agency added in a statement on Telegram.
A video posted on Telegram by Baza, a channel linked to Russian security services, showed a large aircraft falling and exploding in a fireball.
Regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov reported that investigators and emergency workers had already arrived at the crash site in the Korochansky district in Belgorod Oblast.
“The plane fell in a field near a populated area. Everyone on board died,” Gladkov stated on his Telegram channel.
The Il-76 is designed to airlift troops, cargo, military equipment, and weapons, with a usual crew of five and a capacity for carrying up to 90 passengers.
Kharkiv and Kyiv came under Russian aerial assault on Tuesday, resulting in the deaths of at least 18 people.
In December, Russia accused Ukraine of carrying out a “terrorist attack” on civilians in the city of Belgorod, leading to the deaths of 25 people.
Last week, the Kremlin accused Kyiv of killing 27 people in an attack on the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Donetsk, an allegation that Ukraine has rejected.
