Vladimir Putin: Kyiv downed Ukrainian POW plane killing all 74 people on board

In his first comments, the Russian leader said details of a probe would be made public in days
TOPSHOT-RUSSIA-UKRAINE-CONFLICT-PLANE-CRASH
RUSSIAN INVESTIGATIVE COMMITTEE

Kyiv was behind the downing of a Russian military transport plane carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war, state media quoted Vladimir Putin saying.

The president reportedly added that a full investigation into who shot down Ilyushin Il-76 on Tuesday morning would be made public within the next few days.

Moscow accuses the Ukrainians of killing 74 people on board, including 65 captured Ukrainian soldiers en route to be swapped for Russian PoWs when the jet came down in the Belgorod region.

“The missiles that shot down the Il-76 with captured Ukrainian armed forces military personnel were launched from Ukrainian territory,” Putin is quoted by TASS in his first comments on the crash.

He claimed either French or American rockets were used in the attack.

RIA, another state media outlet, quoted Mr Putin as saying the intelligence directorate of Ukraine “knew” that its prisoners of war were on board.

Kyiv, while not definitively denying it was involved, has challenged Moscow’s narrative and called for an international investigation.

Western nations have accused Moscow of deception.

On Thursday, Russia’s Investigative Committee said the plane was struck by a Ukrainian-made surface-to-air missile.

FILE PHOTO: Ilyushin Il-76  Russian military transport plane crashes near Ukraine
Ilyushin Il-76 Russian military transport plane crashes near Ukraine
Host Photo Agency via Getty Imag

“The Ukrainian side was officially warned, and 15 minutes before the plane entered the zone they were given complete information,” Andrei Kartopolov, a former general with close ties to Russia's defence ministry told lawmakers, according to the ruling United Russia party.

He said Ukraine's military command confirmed receipt of the warning.

Kartopolov’s assertion contradicted statements by Ukrainian military intelligence that Russia had not informed it about the flight arrangements.

Andriy Yusov, a Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman, said that contrary to practice before previous PoW swaps, Kyiv had received no requests from Russia to refrain from attacks in the airspace where the plane was downed.

“No evidence has been provided for the charges ... Nothing has been shown to prove the wreckage and the presence of people on board,” he said on national television.

Traffic police officers block off a road near the crash site of the Russian Ilyushin Il-76 military transport plane in Belgorod Region
Traffic police officers block off a road near the crash site of the Russian Ilyushin Il-76 military transport plane in Belgorod region
REUTERS

Conflicting narratives from both sides are a daily feature of a war now nearing the end of its second year.

In this case, the stakes are especially high as it is the deadliest incident of its kind on internationally recognised Russian territory since Russia’s February 2022 invasion.

The United Nations Security Council met on Thursday at the request of Russia to discuss the downed plane.

The UN was not in a position to verify the circumstances of the crash, political affairs chief Rosemary DiCarlo told the council.

She said: “What is clear is that the incident took place in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and ongoing war.

“To avoid further escalation, we urge all concerned to refrain from actions, rhetoric, or allegations that could further fuel the already dangerous conflict.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Moscow of “playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners”.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in