Russia-Ukraine war: Putin ‘playing with lives’ in plane crash as Moscow blames Kyiv

Vladimir Putin has been accused of potentially using Ukrainian prisoners of war as human shields on board a downed Russian military plane.

Khrystyna Hayovyshyn, Ukraine’s deputy ambassador to the UN, said it would be the first case of Russia using human shields on aircraft to cover for transportation of weaponry if it was confirmed PoWs were on board.

“Ukraine was not informed about the number of vehicles, roads and means of transportation of the captives. This alone may constitute intentional actions by Russia to endanger the lives and safety of the prisoners,” she added.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he welcomes the “start of substantial preparations” for Ukraine’s EU accession talks.

Following discussions with Ursula von der Leyen, President of the EU Commission, at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, the Ukrainian President said: “The screening process, which lays the groundwork for the negotiations, has officially begun in Brussels.”

To mark the second anniversary of the war in Ukraine breaking out, The Independent is bringing together a panel of experts who have been at the forefront of the coverage of the conflict.

Two years have passed since Russia invaded its European neighbour and the war has left Ukraine and its people in a state of utter devastation.

Our panel will be looking back at some of the key moments from the past two years, as well as looking ahead to what is likely to happen next and if any future resolution is in sight.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees said Wednesday that he’s worried that the war in Ukraine has been forgotten as the country prepares to mark two years since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi also told The Associated Press in an interview that it was important to remind the international community that Ukrainians were living through a brutal war despite other global crises taking the spotlight.

Speaking at the end of a weeklong visit to Ukraine, Grandi said that the invasion, which was launched by Moscow on 24 February, 2022, continues to bring devastation to civilians with houses destroyed, health centers hit and many facilities not functioning.

The Ilyushin Il-76 military aircraft carrying 74 people was shot down near the Russian city Belgorod, just 40km north of the border with Ukraine on Wednesday. The Il-76 is a military transport aircraft designed to airlift troops, cargo, military equipment and weapons. It has a normal crew of five people, and can carry up to 90 passengers.

The Kremlin said in response to a reporter’s question on Wednesday that it was looking into the situation.

Russia’s top diplomat accused the United States, South Korea and Japan on Wednesday of preparing for war with North Korea.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a UN news conference that this new military bloc brought together by the United States is building up military activity and conducting large-scale exercises. The United States, South Korea and Japan have described their combined military drills as defensive in nature and necessary to cope with growing North Korean nuclear threats.

All of a sudden South Korea’s rhetoric “became even more hostile towards Pyongyang,” Lavrov said. “In Japan as well, we hear aggressive rhetoric” and it is seriously talking about setting up NATO infrastructure with US assistance.

Edith M. Lederer reports:

Investigators searching the site where a Russian military transport plane crashed in a border region near Ukraine reportedly have found the plane’s flight recorders, a day after Moscow accused Kyiv of shooting down the aircraft and Ukraine’s president demanded an international investigation.

The Il-76 fell from the sky and crashed in a huge ball of flame in a rural area of Russia on Wednesday, killing all 74 people on board, Russian authorities said, as the war nears its two-year mark.

Russian officials accused Kyiv of shooting down the plane with two missiles, claiming that 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war were on board as they headed for a prisoner swap. They offered no evidence for their claim.

Nepal has asked Russia to send back hundreds of Nepali nationals who were recruited to fight against Ukraine and repatriate the bodies of those who died in the conflict, Nepal’s top diplomat said Thursday.

The Russian army is estimated to have recruited more than 200 Nepali nationals to fight in Ukraine and at least 14 of them have died there, Nepal’s Foreign Minister Narayan Prakash Saud said in an interview with The Associated Press.

“We have asked Russia to immediately stop the recruitment of Nepali nationals in their army, immediately return those who are already serving in the army, repatriate the bodies of those killed, and treat and return those who were wounded in the fighting,” Saud said.

Binaj Gurubacharya reports: