From Le Figaro with AFP
Published 2 hours ago, updated 2 hours ago
Ukrainian soldiers of the 41st Brigade stand in a trench near the front line, outside Kupiansk, Kharkiv region, January 23, 2024. ROMAN PILIPEY / AFP
The proceedings have been “planned for a long time” and are not related to the recent crash of a Russian military aircraft, the circumstances of which remain unclear, according to the Ukrainian authorities.
Ukrainian authorities announced on Friday, January 26, that they had repatriated the bodies of 77 deceased Ukrainian soldiers. The “long-planned” procedure was completed despite the recent crash of a Russian military aircraft in difficult conditions, for which Moscow blames Kiev.
Russia accuses Ukraine of shooting down a military transport plane in a Russian border region on Wednesday, killing 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war who were due to be exchanged that day, Moscow said. However, Moscow has provided no evidence to support these claims, and Kiev, which has neither confirmed nor denied its involvement, has expressed doubts about the presence of Ukrainian prisoners on board.
“The remains of 77 Ukrainian defenders have been returned to government-controlled territory,” the Ukrainian coordination center responsible for prisoners of war said on Friday. “This repatriation has been planned for a long time,” he said.
This procedure, which therefore does not appear to be related to the crash of the Russian plane, nevertheless takes place at a time when the issue of soldiers in the hands of the Moscow Armed Forces and their replacement is particularly sensitive. Both Ukraine and Russia have launched investigations into the tragedy. For its part, the Kremlin on Friday rejected the idea of publishing evidence of the presence of Ukrainian prisoners on board the plane.
“There’s nothing to say about that”
“Investigators are working, I have nothing to say on this issue,” his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists who asked him about the issue. On Thursday evening, the Russian Investigative Committee released a nearly 40-second video showing footage of a forested area and a snow-covered field.
Several fallen trees and a piece of crumpled metal can be seen, as well as one or two blurred bodies, but the huge carcass of the destroyed military aircraft is nowhere to be seen. AFP is unable to verify the location or date these images were taken.
For his part, Ukrainian human rights commissioner Dmytro Loubinets reiterated that Russia's communications about the crash constituted “propaganda.” Ukraine had received “no information” from Russia on this issue, he regretted, and, like its President Volodymyr Zelensky, called for an independent international investigation.
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