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The plane crash with Ukrainian prisoners of war gives rise to speculation. The head of Ukrainian military intelligence questions Russia’s statements.
Belgorod – After the plane crash in Belgorod, Russia, some questions remain unanswered. All passengers are said to have died – among the 74 dead there were supposedly 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war. Moscow has not released any evidence of the bodies of the Ukrainian soldiers. In Kiev people are therefore speculating about the background.
Plane crash: Ukraine doubts whether its soldiers are dead
“There are some points that are not clear,” said the head of the Ukrainian military intelligence service (HUR), Kyrylo Budanov, on Ukrainian television at the weekend. Russian authorities have published the first images, but no meaningful ones. “This is primarily because they (the Russians) did not show the field littered with corpses and remains that they should have shown in order to assign maximum blame to Ukraine,” Budanov continued. It is therefore still unclear whether dozens of captured Ukrainian soldiers were actually on board the plane.
The photo is said to show Ukrainian soldiers boarding the plane that later crashed – published by Russian authorities. © picture alliance/dpa/Russian Investigative Committee/AP | Uncredited
Plane crash speculation: “Why is Russia hiding the bodies?”
“If it happened as Russia claims, why does Russia continue to hide the bodies?” said the intelligence chief. Russian authorities released three videos of the alleged crash site. One shot shows a blurred image of a corpse, another shows a single body bag. “There are no bodies. There is nothing,” Budanov simply said.
The crash has led to speculation, particularly according to eyewitness reports. Before the military machine crashed, “several large objects” were said to have fallen from it, reported Newsweek according to Anton Gerashenko, a former adviser to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry. At the same time, experts warn that the war in Ukraine is always an information war.
Allegations: Russia blames Ukraine for the plane crash – Ukraine demands clarification
The military plane crashed on Wednesday (January 24) in the western Russian region of Belgorod, about 50 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. According to Russia, there were also 65 Ukrainian soldiers on the plane who were intended for a prisoner of war exchange. Moscow claimed that Kiev was informed of this and deliberately shot down the plane and its own soldiers.
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Kyiv rejected the allegations. The Ukrainian leadership confirmed that a prisoner exchange was planned – but did not know that the soldiers were to be taken to the border by plane. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for an international investigation. Meanwhile, Kiev and Moscow launched criminal investigations. (dpa/AFP//hk)
2024-01-28 22:09:25
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