The battle over the cause of the crash of a Russian transport plane that killed all 74 people on board, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners, is heating up. Russia claimed responsibility for Ukraine and demanded an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council. Ukraine countered that it was Russia’s own play. The UN Security Council decided to hold a meeting on the 25th to discuss response measures.
According to the Russian state-run RIA Novosti news agency, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a press conference on the 24th and requested an emergency meeting of the Security Council regarding the shooting down of the IL-76 transport plane over southern Belgorod, the border between the two countries. He said he did. He urged, “I hope that France, which chairs the (Security Council), will schedule the meeting as soon as possible.” At the time, a total of 74 people were on board the plane, including 65 Ukrainian prisoners, 6 crew members, and 3 escort personnel.
Minister Lavrov repeatedly claimed that the aircraft was shot down by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile from Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine. NBC News reported that the Russian President’s Office (Kremlin) expressed outrage, saying, “The plane crashed as a ‘terrorist act.’”
The Russian Ministry of Defense also raised the possibility that Ukraine was responsible. According to Reuters, Ukraine was well aware of the schedule for transporting Ukrainian soldiers and exchanging prisoners that was scheduled to take place on this day, but Russia was suspicious of the fact that unlike previous prisoner exchanges, it did not request Russia to “guarantee the security of the area’s airspace.” It means that it has.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a Telegram message on the same day, “This accident occurred on Russian territory beyond our control. “The Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners and the emotions of Ukrainian society,” he countered. He then called for an international investigation, saying, “It is necessary to clearly establish all the facts.”
Some in Ukraine also raise suspicions that Russia may have staged a deliberate incident to weaken Western support for Ukraine. Until a clear cause of the accident that both sides can understand is revealed, the confrontation and conflict surrounding it is expected to continue.
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Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.