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Moscow has accused Kiev of taking pictures down a army transport aircraft carrying Ukrainian prisoners of warfare, which crashed close to Russia’s border with Ukraine on Wednesday morning.
The Russian Protection Ministry stated all 74 folks aboard the Il-76 aircraft had been killed, together with 65 Ukrainian troopers who had been transported from Moscow to Russia’s Belgorod area in a prisoner change – the Russian province that has suffered most spillovers from President Vladimir Putin. virtually two-year invasion.
Based on the Ministry of Protection, the passengers additionally included six crew members and three Russian troopers who accompanied the prisoners.
A video posted on the social media app Telegram confirmed a aircraft veering close to a village earlier than bursting into a big fireball because it hit the bottom. Traces of what seemed to be anti-aircraft hearth had been seen within the sky behind, whereas the plane seemed to be on hearth earlier than crashing.
Moscow claimed that Kiev’s forces shot down the aircraft to sabotage the prisoner of warfare change “with the goal of accusing Russia of eliminating Ukrainian troopers.”
In a cryptic assertion issued after the crash, Ukraine’s Basic Employees stated it will proceed to assault Russian army transport plane within the Belgorod area as they ship missiles used to focus on the Ukrainian metropolis of Kharkiv.
“The Armed Forces of Ukraine will proceed to take measures to destroy the technique of supply and management the airspace to destroy the terrorist risk, together with within the path of Belgorod-Kharkov,” the assertion stated.
Ukrainian officers didn’t affirm who was on board, however instructed the Monetary Instances they had been investigating the crash and would offer extra data later.
Andriy Yusov of Ukraine’s army intelligence instructed the Ukrainian service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in Kiev {that a} prisoner change was deliberate for Wednesday however was suspended after the aircraft crash. When contacted by the FT, Yusov didn’t affirm that Kiev had shot down the aircraft with its air defenses and declined to remark till his workplace may confirm particulars of the incident.
Nearly all prisoner exchanges between the warring sides are carried out at a small border crossing connecting the Russian village of Kolotilovka, within the Belgorod area, with the village of Pokrovka, in Ukraine’s Sumy area. The aircraft crashed about 150 km east of the border crossing.
Based on every nation’s protection officers, Ukraine and Russia carried out the most important prisoner swap on January 3, when 230 Ukrainians had been launched in change for 248 Russians. It was the primary prisoner change since August for what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as “Russia-related” causes. In December he stated negotiations with Moscow over the exchanges had been “difficult.”
Margarita Simonyan, editor of Russia’s overseas propaganda community RT, stated she revealed an inventory of the 65 Ukrainian prisoners of warfare who had been on board the aircraft.
The Ukrainian state physique accountable for prisoners of warfare urged warning towards “enemy technique of propaganda in regards to the crash.”
Ukrainian media initially reported, citing nameless sources, that Kiev’s armed forces had shot down the aircraft, claiming it was carrying missiles used for air strikes on Ukraine’s Kharkiv area, which borders Belgorod. A few of them later deleted posts containing these claims.
Anatoly Kartapolov, chairman of the protection committee in Russia’s decrease home of parliament, stated one other Il-76 carrying 80 Ukrainian prisoners of warfare was intently adopted however was safely diverted from the realm.
Vyacheslav Gladkov, the regional governor, stated investigators and support staff had been on the scene close to the village of Yablonovo.