KYIV, Ukraine
High-ranking Russian officials were supposed to be on board the Il-76 aircraft that crashed in Belogorod Oblast on Jan. 24, but the Federal Security Service (FSB) did not allow them to board at "the last moment," Andrii Yusov, Ukraine's military intelligence spokesperson, told RFE/RL on Jan. 25.
The Il-76 transport
plane crashed in Russia's Belgorod Oblast on Jan. 24, allegedly
killing everyone on board. Russia's Defense Ministry then claimed that 65 Ukrainian POWs had been on the plane due to
a scheduled prisoner exchange later that day.
Ukraine's military
intelligence agency did not confirm whether prisoners were on the
plane, nor commented on what might have caused the crash, but said a prisoner
exchange had been planned for that day.
According to Yusov, Ukrainian
intelligence suggests that several senior military and political officials
should have been on board but were instead told by the FSB to use other modes
of transport.
Yusov said that this
information became known to Ukrainian intelligence after the plane crashed.
Following the crash, the FSB
and the Russian military did not allow emergency workers to inspect the crash
site as per protocol, Yusov said.
According to Yusov, five
bodies were sent to the local morgue in Belgorod, and no human remains are visible on videos from the
crash site.
Russia claimed that 65
Ukrainian POWs, six crew members, and three accompanying people were on board.
Chief Ombudsman Dmytro
Lubinets also said on air on Jan. 25 that photos and videos from the site do not indicate "any signs that there were
such a large number of people on the plane."
"I'm not an expert, but
if there were even photos and videos of our prisoners of war, (Russia) would
have already posted it," Lubinets said, referring to the photographic
evidence of the crash site.
Yusov said the names of the
senior officials who were supposed to be on board "are known and will be
revealed," as Ukraine intends to provide its findings to international
investigators.
Lubinets said he will appeal
to the UN and the International Committee of the Red
Cross for help find out what happened, following President Volodymyr
Zelensky's announcement on the evening of Jan. 24 that
Ukraine will insist on an international investigation into the crash.
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