On the day the IL-76 fell, one of the largest prisoner exchanges in the history of a full-scale war was to take place, Andriy Yusov, a representative of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, said on the air of the telethon.
Yusov refused to name the exact number of Ukrainian prisoners who were to be exchanged on January 24.
"We will not provide an exact figure. And before the exchange, until it happens, such things are not practiced. But it would have to be one of the largest exchanges in the history of full-scale war. And in general, we can say that it was supposed to be a jubilee event — the 50th, but, unfortunately, it did not take place," Yusov said.
The MDI will not comment on the "lists" of Ukrainian prisoners who were allegedly to be exchanged on January 24 and which were published by Russian propagandists until they are officially published by Russia. Yusov noted that if Russia officially wants to make the lists public, it should do so through structures related to direct work with prisoners of war, i.e. the Ministry of Defense, special services or humanitarian headquarters.
According to Yusov, the demand to create an open international commission to investigate the causes and circumstances of the Il-76 crash is logical and justified. After all, it is necessary to study the remains of the plane, the black boxes and, of course, carefully examine the place where the Il-76 fell. But Russia in every way rejects the possibility of such a commission.
The UN previously stated that they could not establish the presence of Ukrainian prisoners on board and find out the circumstances of the disaster.
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, MDI 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.