White House says investigating circumstances of Russian military plane crash, has no reliable information yet
The United States is investigating the circumstances of Wednesday’s Il-76 Russian military transport aircraft crash but does not yet have enough information to draw any conclusions, said U.S. National Security spokesperson John Kirby.
We’ve seen the reports [about the crash], we’re trying to get more information, but it would be imprudent for me to speculate beyond that; I just don’t know the veracity of these reports. You know, the Ukrainians are claiming one thing, the Russians are claiming another, and we just don’t know enough to comment on it.
On January 24, an Il-76 military transport aircraft crashed in the Korochansky District of Russia’s Belgorod region near the Ukrainian border. The Russian Defense Ministry reported that there were 74 people on board: 65 Ukrainian POWs, three Russian military personnel, and six crew members. According to Russian authorities, all of them were killed in the crash. The Russian Defense Ministry accused Ukrainian military personnel of shooting down the aircraft.
Ukrainian authorities neither confirmed nor denied the Russian Defense Ministry’s claim that there were Ukrainian POWs on the plane. Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate confirmed that a prisoner exchange was planned for that day. The agency said it did not have “reliable and exhaustive information” about who was on board the Il-76.