Ukraine and Russia have contradicted one another over whether or not there had been correct notification to safe the airspace round an space the place a navy transport aircraft Moscow says was carrying 65 Ukrainian POWs crashed, killing them and 9 others on board.
Russian lawmaker Andrei Kartapolov instructed deputies in Moscow on January 25 that Ukrainian navy intelligence had been given a 15-minute warning earlier than the Ilyushin Il-76 navy transport aircraft entered the Belgorod area in Russia, close to the border with Ukraine, and that Russia had obtained affirmation the message was obtained.
Kartapolov didn’t present any proof to again up his declare and Ukrainian navy intelligence spokesman Andriy Yusov reiterated in feedback to RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service that it had not obtained both a written or verbal request to safe the airspace the place the aircraft went down.
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There was no direct affirmation from Kyiv on Russian claims that the aircraft had Ukrainian POWs on board, or that the plane was downed by a Ukrainian antiaircraft missile.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has referred to as for a world investigation of the incident, and Yusov reiterated that decision, as ”there are lots of circumstances that require investigation and most research.”
The RIA Novosti information company on January 25 reported that each black bins had been recovered from the wreckage website in Russia’s Belgorod area close to the border with Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on January 25 referred to as the downing of the Ilyushin Il-76 navy transport aircraft a ”monstrous act,” although Moscow has but to point out any proof that it was downed by a Ukrainian missile, or that there have been Ukrainian prisoners on board.
Whereas not saying who shot down the aircraft, Zelenskiy mentioned that ”all clear info have to be established…our state will insist on a world investigation.”
Ukrainian officers have mentioned {that a} prisoner alternate was to have taken place on January 24 and that Russia had not knowledgeable Ukraine that Ukrainian POWs could be flown on cargo planes.
Ukrainian navy intelligence mentioned it didn’t have ”dependable and complete data” on who was on board the flight however mentioned the Russian POWs it was answerable for ”have been delivered in time to the conditional alternate level the place they have been protected.”
Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s commissioner for human rights, mentioned in a publish on X, previously Twitter, that ”at present, there aren’t any indicators of the very fact that there have been so many individuals on the Il-76 aircraft, be they residents of Ukraine or not.”
Aviation consultants instructed RFE/RL that it was attainable a Ukrainian antiaircraft missile downed the aircraft, however added that it may have additionally been a Russian missile that was accountable.
”Through the investigation, you may simply decide which system shot down the aircraft based mostly on the missiles’ damaging parts,” mentioned Roman Svitan, a Ukrainian reserve colonel and an aviation-instructor pilot.
When requested about Russian claims of dozens of POWs on board, Svitan mentioned that from the footage launched to this point, he’d seen no proof to again up the statements.
”From the footage that was there, I seemed by means of all of it, it’s not clear the place there are dozens of our bodies…. There’s not a single physique seen in any respect. At one time I used to be a navy investigator, together with investigating disasters; imagine me, if there have been seven or eight dozen folks there, the sector could be strewn with corpses and stays of our bodies,” Svitan added.
Russia backed up its accusation that Ukraine intentionally shot down the navy transport aircraft by saying Russian radar registered the launch of two missiles from Ukraine’s Kharkiv area, which borders the Belgorod area.
The Ukrainian Common Workers mentioned in a press release that didn’t point out the crash that the Ukrainian navy had observed extra Russian navy transport plane touchdown in Belgorod and linked this to Russian missile strikes on Kharkiv and different Ukrainian cities.
”With this in thoughts, Ukraine’s armed forces will proceed to take measures to destroy technique of supply and train airspace management to get rid of the terrorist risk, together with within the Belgorod-Kharkiv course,” it mentioned on Telegram.
A Ukrainian navy intelligence assertion on Fb mentioned Kyiv had not been requested to make sure airspace safety across the Belgorod space as had been the case throughout earlier prisoner of battle swaps.
It mentioned Russia’s accusations that Kyiv shot down the transport aircraft might be ”a deliberate motion to destabilize the scenario in Ukraine and weaken worldwide help for our state.”
Russia referred to as for an emergency UN Safety Council session on January 25 to debate the downing of the plane, which Overseas Minister Sergei Lavrov referred to as a ”prison” act by Ukraine.
Russian officers mentioned the aircraft was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of battle, six crew members, and three escorts.
An inventory of the six crew members who have been imagined to be on the flight was obtained by RFE/RL. The deaths of three of the crew members have been confirmed to RFE/RL by their family.
Video on social media confirmed a aircraft spiraling to the bottom, adopted by a loud bang and explosion that despatched a ball of smoke and flames skyward.