Russia and Ukraine are exchanging accusations over the deadly crash of a military transport plane that Russia says was shot down by Kiev forces carrying Ukrainian prisoners.
A Russian Il-76 was filmed crashing into a huge fireball in the Russian countryside near the border with Ukraine on Wednesday. The Russian government immediately accused Kiev of shooting down the large plane, saying it was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners who were being transported for a prisoner exchange.
Ukrainian authorities on Thursday did not explicitly deny shooting down the plane, but said they could not confirm that Ukrainian soldiers on board the plane were on board for a prisoner exchange.
Some officials in Kiev have cast doubt on Russia's claims that there were prisoners on board.
Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Rubinets wrote in X newspaper:
“Ukraine demands a transparent international investigation into the downing of this plane.”
The cause of the crash remains unknown.
Kiev previously confirmed that a prisoner exchange was scheduled to take place on the border between the two countries on Wednesday, but said the Russian side had not informed it that the prisoners would be transferred by plane.
Ukraine's SBU Security Service said on Thursday it had opened a criminal investigation into the downing of the military plane and would look into possible “violations of the laws and customs of war.”
On Wednesday night, Ukraine's president similarly accused the Russian government of “playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners” and called for an international investigation into the crash.
“It is clear that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the feelings of their loved ones and the feelings of our society,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a nightly video broadcast.
However, Russian access to the crash site is likely to impede future investigations, and no independent group has yet visited the crash site.
On Thursday, both sides also offered conflicting accounts in the hours leading up to the plane crash. A senior Russian lawmaker said he gave Ukrainian military intelligence 15 minutes' warning before a Russian military transport plane carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war entered the area where it was shot down on Wednesday.
“The Ukrainian side was formally warned and given full information 15 minutes before the plane entered the zone, which we received,” Andrei Kartapolov, chairman of the Russian Duma Defense Committee, told lawmakers. This was also confirmed by the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.” receipt of. ”
Ukraine rejected Kartapolov's claims, saying it had not been informed of the flight arrangements by Moscow.
Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Andriy Yusov said Thursday that, contrary to previous practice before prisoner exchanges, Kiev had not received a request from Russia to refrain from offensive actions.
Nevertheless, Yusov seemed to hint that there may have been Ukrainian prisoners on board, telling Radio Svoboda: 300 systems [being used in the war]”
The Kremlin on Thursday stood by its position that Ukraine shot down the plane, with President Vladimir Putin's spokesman calling it “an absolutely horrific act.”
Contradictory narratives on both sides have emerged as a daily feature of the war, which is now nearing the end of its second year. Many of Russia's denials and accusations during the war have been demonstrably proven false, including Russia's claims that it did not target Ukrainian civilians.
