A investigation is being conducted under an article of the Ukrainian Criminal Code on violation of the laws and customs of war, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said.
“The SBU is taking measures to clarify the circumstances” of the disaster, he added in a statement cited by the French agency AFP.
Russia accused Ukraine of having shot down the plane, an Ilyushin Il-76, with two missiles, despite 65 Ukrainian soldiers on board for an exchange of prisoners of war.
Ukraine admitted that a prisoner exchange was planned for Wednesday, which did not take place, but said it did not have “reliable and complete information” about the plane’s passengers.
The Ukrainian military secret services (GUR) said that Ukraine was “not informed” of the need to ensure the security of airspace in the Belgorod-Kharkiv zone, where the plane crashed, on the Russian side.
Ukrainian military sources cited by Ukrinform said on Wednesday that the plane was carrying missiles for the S-300 anti-aircraft systems used to bomb Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukraine will insist on an international investigation into the downing of the Russian plane.
Rescue teams today found the military plane’s black boxes in a state that “will allow them to be decoded”, according to a spokesman for the Russian emergency services.
“They will be transported on a special flight to a Ministry of Defense laboratory [em Moscovo]where its content will be analyzed,” the spokesperson told the Russian agency TASS.
The Russian region of Belgorod is regularly targeted by Ukrainian missiles and drones.
The Ukrainian army said it will continue to attack military targets on Russian territory, as it has been doing for several weeks at a steady pace.
Russia has been constantly bombing Ukraine since it invaded the neighboring country on February 24, 2022.
Since the start of the war, Ukraine has carried out 49 prisoner exchanges with Russia, which allowed 2,681 soldiers and 147 civilians to return to the country, Ukrainian authorities announced on Wednesday.
No data was released on the number of Russians involved in prisoner exchanges.
The Russian war against Ukraine has caused civilian and military casualties yet to be counted, but several sources, including the UN, have admitted that they will be high.
Read Also: Black boxes found from Russian plane that crashed in Belgorod
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Source: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/mundo/2487904/kyiv-abre-inquerito-criminal-sobre-queda-de-aviao-militar-russo
