The United Nations cannot establish whether there were Ukrainian prisoners of war on board the downed Il-76 plane or find out the circumstances of the disaster.
This was stated by UN Deputy Secretary General Rosemary DiСarlo at a meeting of the UN Security Council, Suspilne reports.
According to the Russian authorities, 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, six Russian crew members and three Russian servicemen were on board the plane. According to the Ukrainian authorities, the plane could have missiles for the Russian military system on board," said Dicarlo.
The deputy secretary general of the UN said that they cannot verify the message from the Russian side and find out whether there were actually Ukrainian prisoners on board the downed Il-76.
"The UN is unable to verify these reports or the circumstances of the disaster. It is obvious that the incident happened in the context of Russiaʼs invasion of Ukraine and the ongoing war," she said.
Rosemary DiCarlo emphasized that in recent weeks, the scale and intensity of attacks on Ukraine have increased, which indicates a dangerous trajectory of the war. DiCarlo also expressed concern about rocket attacks and shelling of civilian areas, resulting in civilian casualties and destruction of critical infrastructure.
What happened?
On the morning of January 24, an Il-76 transport plane crashed in the Belgorod region of Russia. The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation stated that it was shot down, and on board were 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war, six crew members and three companions — all of them died. The Russian authorities announced the disruption of the exchange of prisoners. The Russian Federation did not provide any evidence that there were prisoners on the plane.
The Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine confirmed that the exchange was planned for January 24. They emphasized that Russia had warned in the past about the need for Belgorodʼs airspace security during exchanges, but this time it was silent. On January 25, Ukraineʼs Main Directorate of Intelligence said that there were supposed to be senior officials of the military and political leadership on board the downed Il-76, but the Russian FSB forbade them to fly at the "last moment." Only five bodies were taken to the morgue in Belgorod, and Russian rescuers were not allowed to inspect the scene.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine indirectly confirmed that Ukrainian troops shot down an Il-76, adding that the enemy uses such aircraft to deliver ammunition and missiles to Belgorod, which are used to fire at Kharkiv and the region. In its statement, the General Staff did not mention the alleged death of Ukrainian prisoners of war.
The commander of the Air Force of the Ukrainian Armed Forces hinted that the statement of the Russians about the shooting down of their own prisoners of war by Ukraine is a discredit in order to reduce international support.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy instructed the military and special services to thoroughly understand the situation. Ukraine will insist on an international investigation of the event. The Security Service of Ukraine opened criminal proceedings.