Vladimir Putin says US missile shot down Russian plane

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that a US-made Patriot missile shot down a military transport plane that Moscow said was carrying captured Ukrainian soldiers.

“That the plane was shot down has already been definitively confirmed by the American Patriot system,” Putin said on television.

The plane was shot down on January 24, Russian officials said 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war They were on the ship.

Ukraine neither confirmed nor denied the downing, but some officials questioned whether the plane was carrying Ukrainian prisoners of war.

Putin also said that Russia “insists” that an international investigation be launched into the shooting, but that “no international organization is willing” to participate.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also called for an international investigation, but said it was likely to be hindered because Russia has full control of access to the crash site.

Patriots are guided surface-to-air missiles that can engage aircraft or be used defensively to shoot down missiles.

usa It was ultimately agreed to provide such systems to Ukraine in late 2022.