PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR Zelensky has accused Russia of “playing with the lives” of  Ukrainian prisoners of war, after Moscow claimed that Kyiv downed a Russian plane transporting Prisoners of war to an agreed exchange site. 

The Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement yesterday in which it said that all 65 PoWs, six Russian crew members and three servicemen perished in the plane crash in the Belgorod region. 

It said that the aircraft was hit by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile system fired from the Kharkov region, and called the act an “atrocity”. 

Ukraine has not confirmed or denied any involvement in the plane being hit, but President Zelensky posted a video statement on social media yesterday evening in which he said his state will insist on an “international investigation” into the incident.

Ukraine has accused Russia of creating a threat to the safety of PoWs, however, by failing to deconflict the airspace of the route the plane was taking before the arranged prisoner swap.

Today, Defense Minister Umerov, Commander-in-Chief Zaluzhnyi, Military Intelligence Head Budanov, and Security Service Head Maliuk delivered their reports regarding the aircraft and prisoner exchange.

It is clear that the Russians are playing with the lives of Ukrainian… pic.twitter.com/WZGIoK165r

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) January 24, 2024

The Ukrainian President said that it is clear that the Russians are “playing with the lives of Ukrainian prisoners of war, the feelings of their relatives, and the emotions of our society”. 

He said that the facts of the incident must be established as much as possible, “given that the aircraft crashed in Russian territory that is beyond our control”.

He said that he has heard a report from his officials on the use of Ukraine’s air force, and that the country’s main intelligence directorate is attempting to establish the fate of all of the Ukrainian captives Moscow is claiming were aboard the flight. 

The Belgorod region, which is in a frontline area of the war, can be seen top right, relative to Russia's border with Ukraine.

The cause of the crash has not been confirmed yet by Ukrainian military intelligence, nor has it been confirmed that Ukrainian PoWs were on board. 

A video of the plane crash on social media showed a plane going down near Yablonovo village in the Belgorod region at 8 am our time, yesterday morning. 

The plane’s sharp descent can be seen, before it disappears behind houses momentarily, and then a fireball explosion is visible at ground level. 

The regional governor of the area has said that the plane crashed in a field near a residential area. 

Initially, Ukraine’s general staff was quoted by the Ukrainska Pravda news website to have said that the downed plane was carrying Russian missiles, without making any reference to PoWs.