Andriy Yusov, representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense, noted that the statement from the Russian Federation about the use of the airfield in Belgorod for so-called humanitarian purposes sounds very strange, especially considering that the airspace there is closed for civilian aviation.
He shared this information on the air with Espresso.
"Drawing conclusions now would be premature, but scenarios could have been completely different. In general, when we talk about Belgorod, the use of this airfield for so-called humanitarian purposes, as they claim, sounds very strange. Let's remind that the airspace there is closed for civilian aviation. Regarding what is happening there, it is near the front line, so this territory is practically in a state of hostilities. And today, Belgorod region, near Moscow and Crimea, is among the leaders in terms of saturation with Russian air defense and missile defense systems, as well as calculations of MANPADS actively used there," Andriy Yusov pointed out.
According to him, there have been instances where Russians shot down their own planes. On that day, both Ukraine and Russia used their drones. Ukrainian reconnaissance UAVs were operating over Belgorod, while the Russians launched kamikaze drones. Russian sources report information about the operation of Russian air defense against supposedly Ukrainian drones, which they themselves informed and reported.
"If we rely on Russian information regarding the number of people on board the Il-76, the plane was loaded only to 1/3 capacity. What else could have been there? Considering that the plane had already carried missile transfers, especially for the S-300 and S-400, there could have been such cargo. Actually, the information about the number of guards on board doesn't withstand any criticism. To imagine that Moscow invaders put only three guards on board, where 65 Ukrainian defenders are located, would be very naive on our part. Therefore, all this requires maximum access, which can only be achieved through an international investigation," emphasized the Main Intelligence Directorate representative.
Yusov added that Ukraine and Russia will not trust each other's conclusions at the moment, so a third party should be involved. Ukraine is ready to be as open as possible to such an investigation. Unfortunately, such readiness is not observed from the aggressor state's position.
What is known about the crash of the Il-76 plane in Russia
On Wednesday, January 24, in the Korochansky district of the Belgorod region, a Russian military transport plane, Il-76, crashed.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that supposedly Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board, being transported to the Belgorod region for exchange.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced that Russia had urgently requested a UN Security Council meeting due to the plane crash, which Moscow blamed on Ukraine. France rejected the call for a meeting.
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine emphasized that the Defense Forces control the airspace, monitor missile launch points, and logistics of their supply, especially using military transport aviation, and will continue to take measures to destroy delivery means.
The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine confirmed that a prisoner exchange was supposed to take place on January 24. The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense noted that they currently do not have credible and comprehensive information about who exactly was on board the plane and in what quantity.
John Kirby, the White House National Security Council coordinator, stated that the U.S. cannot currently confirm the presence of Ukrainian prisoners on the Russian Il-76.
On January 25, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he would insist on an international investigation into the crash of the military transport plane Il-76 in Russia.
