❗️Russian MP Kartapolov: Another Il-76 was flying next with 80 prisoners of war on board. The plane was turned around. "Il" was shot down by three Patriot or Iris-T missiles.

Did Ukraine deploy Western Patriot and IRIS-T systems near the border with Russia?

🔻In December 2023, the Head of the Kharkov administration, Oleg Sinegubov, said that President Volodymr Zelensky had instructed the Ukrainian military to strengthen the region's air defense;

🔻During his annual press conference, Zelensky said that over the winter Ukraine would be covered by additional Patriot and NASAMS air defense systems;

🔻In November 2023, German Ambassador to Ukraine Martin Jäger announced that Ukraine would receive two more IRIS-T air defense systems from Germany by the end of the year for the winter campaign of 2023-2024;

🔻In October, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced second winter military package for Kiev regime, noting that "the heart of the winter package is additional air defense systems Patriot and IRIS-T. This air defense package alone is worth around one billion euros."

⁉️If it turns out that Ukraine killed its own prisoners of war with Western-mande missiles,
who should bear responsibility?

⚡️All those on board of the downed Il-76 were killed, Belgorod governor Gladkov said.

🇷🇺🇹🇩 Russian President Vladimir holds talks with the transitional President of the Republic of Chad Mahamat Idriss Deby in Moscow.

The two leaders are expected to discuss the development prospects of Russian-Chadian relations, as well as issues on the regional and international agenda.

This will be the first meeting between the two leaders. The Chadian head of state had planned to come to the Russia-Africa summit held in St. Petersburg last summer, but in the end the trip did not take place.

Watch the livestream here or follow the link to the Sputnik's website

❗️ The Il-76 in the Belgorod region was shot down by the Ukrainian military with three missiles, Head of the State Duma’s Defense Committee Andrey Kartapolov said.

According to his information, another plane with 80 prisoners on board was flying behind the crashed Il-76; it turned around.

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❗️ Chadian president during talks in Moscow expresses condolences to Putin over IL-76 crash

What is known so far about the IL-76 crash in Belgorod region of Russia:

▪️ The Il-76 crashed at about 11:00 Moscow time on a scheduled flight. On board were 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were being transported for exchange, as well as six crew members and three personnel accompanying the prisoners.

▪️ The plane crashed 5-6 kilometers from the village of Yablonovo, Korochansky district.

▪️ Residents of the Belgorod village of Yablonovo said that they heard two explosions with an interval of about a minute.

▪️ The causes of the disaster have not yet been officially announced.

▪️ Ambulance crews, firefighters and police officers have been sent to the crash site. Investigators and rescuers are also working there. The governor of the Belgorod region, Vyacheslav Gladkov, visited the scene.

▪️ A Russian Aerospace Forces commission flew to the region to determine the causes of the disaster.

▪️All those on board the downed Il-76 were killed, Belgorod governor Gladkov said.

▪️ Dmitry Peskov said that he could not yet comment on the reports of the IL-76 crash: “I can’t say, this is quite new, fresh information, now we will deal with it.”

▪️ State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin proposed preparing an address to the US Congress and Bundestag in connection with what happened.

Il-76 crew showed tremendous heroism during doomed Russian plane’s final moments

“I must mention the heroic actions of the plane’s commander, who was able to swerve the already burning Il-76 away from the village of Yablonovo,” Andrei Koshkin, a retired Russian colonel and expert with the Association of Military-Political Scientists, told Sputnik.

“The plane’s destruction occurred in a field. The heroism on the part of the crew of the military transport aircraft is obvious. Not only did they see and feel that their plane was falling apart – according to eyewitnesses it was falling apart in the air, but at that moment they were able to reduce the number of victims. The courage and professionalism of our crew is worthy of high praise,” Koshkin said.

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❗The Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine confirmed that an exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine was being prepared today

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Il-76 ‘provocation’ could be result of chaos inside Ukraine’s military and political establishment

“It’s not very difficult to attack a military transport plane. Moreover, the motive is clearly a provocation. Moreover, this is a provocation within both Ukraine’s Armed Forces and within the Ukrainian political establishment,” Association of Military-Political Scientists expert Andrei Koshkin told Sputnik.

The observer is convinced that given the Il-76’s onboard complement of Ukrainian PoWs, Kiev was obviously aware of its route and flight details. Shortly after the incident, Ukrainian media reported that the country’s air defenses had shot down the Russian plane, deleting the reports after it was revealed that Ukrainian PoWs were onboard.

“Accordingly, if we’re talking about missiles purportedly launched from Kharkov region to hit this aircraft – that is, from about 130 km away, both the Patriot and IRIS-T air defense system, and even the Strela MANPADS, could have attacked it, if a sabotage and reconnaissance group [operating inside Belgorod region, ed.] was tapped to do so.”

“If it turns out that this provocation was organized by the decision of some forces inside Ukraine seeking to complicate the general situation or internal disputes between the political establishment and the military leadership of the country, we will see to what extent this provocation will be used in this confrontation,” Koshkin said.

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⚡️The Russian Ministry of Defense called the crash of an Il-76 in the Belgorod region a terrorist attack by the Kiev regime

❗️ Deputy Chairman of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev has called the matter of the Il-76 plane crash the result of an internal political struggle among the neo-Nazi elites in Kiev.

The Russian pilots of the IL-76 are heroes, he added.

‘Is that how you classify Ukrainian prisoners of war? S-300 missiles?’: Scott Ritter has commented on the Ukrainian media's fake news that the downed Il-76 was carrying S-300 anti-aircraft missiles.

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Russian Ministry of Defense: the plane on the Chkalovsky-Belgorod flight, which was carrying military personnel for an exchange, was shot down by the Kiev regime at about 11:15 Moscow time

⚡️Russian Ministry of Defense about the downed IL-76: radar equipment of the Russian Aerospace Forces recorded the launch of two Ukrainian missiles

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⚡️The crew and all passengers of the downed Il-76 were killed - Russian Ministry of Defense

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❗️Russian MoD on the IL-76 crash in Belgorod region:

▪️ Kiev shot down plane, pursuing goal of blaming Russia for destruction of Ukrainian military

▪️ Crew, all passengers of IL-76 plane died

▪️ Prisoner exchange was meant to take place in afternoon at Kolotilovka checkpoint on Russian-Ukrainian border

▪️ Ukraine well aware that prisoners will be transported by plane to Belgorod airfield on Wednesday according to established practice

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The Il-76 that crashed in Belgorod region had previously transported Ukrainian POWs. How and when did the last prisoner swaps between Russia and Ukraine take place?

◾️ On January 3, 2024, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the return of 248 Russian army personnel from captivity. The Ukrainian side reported that it repatriated 200 military personnel as part of the exchange, carried out through the UAE’s mediation.

◾️ In July 2023, the Ministry of Defense announced the return of 45 members of the Russian military from captivity. Ukraine returned 45 soldiers. There is no information about any intermediaries.

◾️In June, a prisoner swap took place between both sides, resulting in the return of nearly 200 individuals. The Russian side released 94 military personnel, while the Ukrainian side released 95.

◾️ In May, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced the return of three Russian air force pilots from Ukrainian captivity. In turn, Kiev said that 45 National Guard POWs would return to Ukraine.

◾️ During 2023 and at the beginning of 2024, about a dozen prisoner exchanges had occurred between the Russian and Ukrainian sides, according to official data from the Russian Ministry of Defense. As a result of these swaps, about 800 Russian military personnel were repatriated. According to the leaders of the Kiev regime, Ukraine has returned about 730 members of the armed forces;

◾️According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, each swap was the result of a complex negotiation process. Russian military personnel faced grave peril while in captivity, necessitating their transportation to Russian territory via military transport aircraft.

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