IPO was hastily assembled: Expert draws attention to contradictory Russian statements about downing of IL-76
The information and psychological operation of the Russian Federation (IPO) regarding the downing of the IL-76 aircraft is rather poorly developed and voiced, as there are many contradictory statements.
This opinion was expressed by military expert Roman Svitan in a comment to Ukrinform.
"This is an IPO involving the main Russian special services. The existing information flow has not yet been consolidated, so we can say that this is a hastily assembled special operation, at least to cover up the downing of the plane," he said.
According to the expert, if this is a cover-up, it is "rather poorly assembled," which is why there are rather contradictory statements from the Russian side, ranging from the ownership of the missile that shot down the IL-76 to the cargo on board.
"The fact is that to say from the rostrum that the plane could have shot down the Iris-T with a range of up to 40 km, when in fact the range of this plane is about 70 km, is at least unprofessionalism, at most - just poorly developed IPO," Svitan emphasized.
He noted that the information about prisoners on board also does not sound reliable.
"The IL-76 took off from the Belgorod airport, and the maximum place it could fly to was a nearby crossing point, about 100 kilometers away, where the prisoners are exchanged. But there is nowhere for the plane to land there, and the prisoners would not have been parachuted off the board," the expert emphasized.
Mr. Svitan noted that "these inconsistencies in the Russian IPO indicate that it is, on the one hand, poorly developed and, on the other hand, poorly voiced."
In his opinion, the international community will now observe how "the Russians will twist their own statements like a snake in a pan, but then a real "debriefing" will have to be conducted.
As Ukrinform reported, according to Russian Telegram channels, on January 24, an Il-76 aircraft, which is used to transport military equipment and troops, crashed in the Belgorod region.
Sources in the Ukrainian Armed Forces noted that the plane was carrying missiles for the S-300 air defense system, which the invaders use for massive shelling of Kharkiv and other border regions of Ukraine.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claims that the plane "was carrying 65 captured Ukrainian servicemen," as well as six crew members and three escorts.
A representative of the Main Intelligence Directorate, Andriy Yusov, said that the exchange of prisoners between Russia and Ukraine was supposed to take place on January 24. According to him, the information voiced by the Russian side that the prisoners of war could have been in the IL-76 plane that crashed in the Belgorod region is being checked.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Ukraine would insist on an international investigation into the situation around the downing of the Russian IL-76 in the Belgorod region of Russia.
According to military expert Roman Svitan, the IL-76 was most likely shot down by a Russian S-300 missile that was aimed at Kharkiv.
Photo: NEXTA