In the case of the crashed Russian Il-76, the Ukrainian side has so far no evidence of prisoners of war being transported in the aircraft. “We did not see any signs that there were a large number of people on the plane – whether Ukrainian citizens or non-Ukrainian citizens,” human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said on news television. Like President Volodymyr Zelensky, he called for an international investigation into the incident. He reconfirmed the failed prisoner exchange.
Lubinez emphasized that, according to the Geneva Convention, the country of residence bears all responsibility for the life and health of prisoners of war. “This is the Russian Federation,” the ombudsman emphasized. Before the exchange, Moscow was obliged to inform the International Committee of the Red Cross about the transport route of prisoners of war. He accused the Russian side of a targeted and long-planned campaign to slander Ukraine.
The day before, a Russian Ilyushin 76 military transport plane crashed near Belgorod near the Ukrainian border. Moscow accused Kiev of shooting down the plane with two missiles. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, there were 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war in the Ilyushin, in addition to the six-man crew and three companions. The Ukrainian side confirmed a planned prisoner exchange. Initial media reports that the plane had been shot down were withdrawn after a short time.
Zelenskyj: Playing with the emotions of our society
However, there are still many unanswered questions in this case. Zelensky had said that the Ukrainian military intelligence service HUR was currently trying to find out more about the fate of the Ukrainian prisoners of war. He also instructed his Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba to provide foreign partners with all information available to Ukraine. “Our state will insist on international clarification,” he emphasized. Zelensky also said: “It is obvious that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners, with the feelings of their relatives and with the emotions of our society.”
Ukraine blames Russia
A statement from Ukrainian military intelligence also said: “We currently have no reliable and comprehensive information about who exactly and how many were on board the aircraft.” For its part, Ukraine complied with all agreements and brought the Russian soldiers to the exchange site on time, the authority said.
It continued: “According to the agreement, the Russian side had to ensure the safety of our defenders. At the same time, the Ukrainian side was not informed about the need to ensure the safety of the airspace in the area around the city of Belgorod in a certain period, as in has been done several times in the past.”
The fact that the Ukrainian side was not informed this time about the exact Russian means of transport “could indicate deliberate actions by Russia aimed at endangering the lives and safety of prisoners,” the Ukrainian authority wrote. Russian state media interpreted the announcement as indirect confirmation that the Ukrainians had shot down the plane with their own soldiers on board. However, there is no official confirmation from Kiev.
Kremlin sees need for further clarification
According to the Kremlin, Russia sees a need for further clarification after the crash. “It has not yet been fully clarified what happened; investigators only began examining the remains of the plane yesterday,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, according to Russian agencies. He initially did not comment on Wednesday when the plane crashed in the Belgorod region.
Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin was informed by the military, Peskov said. There should therefore only be a reaction when open questions have been clarified. For this purpose, the seized flight recorders should also be evaluated, as state media in Moscow reported. Regarding Zelensky’s calls for an international investigation into the crash, Peskov said: “If he has in mind an international investigation into the criminal actions of the Kiev regime, then that is necessary.”
Peskov left it open whether there could be further prisoner exchanges in the future. “The exchange of prisoners is a process that takes place in complete calm. The fact that the Ukrainians have now killed their own prisoners, their own citizens, who were supposed to be back home literally within 24 hours, is of course a terrible act,” said Peskov. “You don’t want to get that into your head.” Nobody can currently say how this will affect future prisoner exchanges. In Kiev, Zelensky always mentioned bringing thousands of Ukrainians home from Russian captivity as a priority goal.
US Institute: Moscow is exploiting the incident
Experts at the US Institute for War Studies (ISW) in Washington said that neither the Russian nor the Ukrainian statements could be independently verified. According to their statements, the Russian leadership is exploiting the incident to sow distrust in Ukrainian society against the government in Kiev. The question of exchanging prisoners of war in particular is seen as a sensitive topic that triggers emotions for Ukrainians and Russians alike. In addition, Russian officials wanted to weaken Western military support for the country with unsubstantiated claims that Ukraine used German or US missiles for the alleged launch.
