US looking into crash of Russian military plane as Moscow, Kyiv trade blame

WASHINGTON

The White House said Wednesday it is looking into the crash of a Russian military plane on the border with Ukraine as Kyiv and Moscow trade accusations about responsibility.

The military transport plane crashed near the Ukrainian border in the city of Belgorod. Russia accused Ukraine of targeting the plane, which it said was transporting Ukrainian prisoners of war ahead of a planned exchange, with anti-air missiles.

Kyiv responded by suggesting the downing of the plane may be a “planned and deliberate” action by Moscow to “destabilize” the situation in Ukraine and “weaken international support for our state.”

The US said it is trying to determine what really happened.

"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 of these reports," National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.

"The Ukrainians are claiming one thing the Russians are claiming another and we just don't know enough to comment on it," he added.

On Telegram, Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence said there was supposed to be an exchange of prisoners between Ukraine and Russia, which did not take place, adding that it currently does not have “reliable and comprehensive information” about who exactly was on board.

Earlier, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed a military plane en route to Ukraine for a prisoner exchange was shot down by that country’s armed forces in the region of Belgorod, killing all 65 Ukrainian servicemen on board, as well as six crew members and three escorts.

The ministry called the incident "a terrorist attack" organized to accuse Russia of killing Ukrainian servicemen and said Ukrainian authorities were "well aware of the planned transportation" with the purpose of further exchange.