Ukrainian forces fired two missiles and shot down an Il-76 transport plane flying over the Belgorod region of Russia, killing all six crew members, three escorts and 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war on board. When the search and rescue personnel arrived at the crash site, they were shocked to see the remains of a large number of people on board scattered on the snow. It's been a few days since this one, and opinions on the Internet are mixed. But no matter what you say, the crotch pull of the Russian air defense system is certain.
At the request of Russia, the UN Security Council convened a meeting devoted to this event. Judging from the current situation, the shooting down incident was caused by a joint mistake on the part of both sides. The Ukrainian side apparently received information about the Il-76 traveling to and from Belgorod and believed that the plane was loaded with munitions.
If the Ukrainian army knew for sure that the planes were pulling prisoners of war, they would no longer have the humanity to attack their own captured soldiers. What's more, Ukraine is now extremely short of soldiers, and these 65 people have been released, which is the strength of two platoons.
Not to mention the mistakes of the Russian side. From the beginning of the war to the present, the Russian Aerospace Forces have suffered serious losses many times because of the Ukrainian Air Force or the Ukrainian Air Defense and Missile Units, and this time it is at least the fourth time. In May 2023, the Russian army lost 4 combat aircraft in succession over Belgorod Oblast. In December 2023, the Russian army lost 3 more Su-34 fighter-bombers over Zaporizhzhia. At the beginning of 2024, the Russian army also suspected of losing another A-50 AWACS aircraft over the Sea of Azov, but this incident has not been confirmed by the Russian side.
It can be seen that the degree of negligence of the Russian army is shocking. In fact, the Ukrainian army has fully joined NATO's information-based command and control system, and the Patriot missiles basically rely on Western intelligence support for operations.
The Su-34 was shot down over Zaporizhzhia with the support of an Australian AWACS aircraft, and the Ukrainian army directly launched a missile to shoot it down. In other words, the Ukrainian army's A-guide and B-shot tactics are already quite skillful. Belgorod Oblast is located at the junction of Russia and Ukraine, and Ukraine's deployment of Patriot missiles in the border area can completely threaten the depth of Russia.
However, the Russian army allowed such a gap in the battlefield to exist for a long time, and did not take measures to suppress and clear the activities of the Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile forces. Presumably, the Russian side believes that the exchange of prisoners of war has already been notified to the Ukrainian side, but how does the Ukrainian army know that the Ukrainian prisoners of war are being pulled on the plane? Is it deliberate on the part of the Russian army, or is it careless? I think it's still the carelessness of the Russian army.
This example also shows that Zelensky has no interest in peace talks at all. In the first year of the war, Zelensky himself swore that the ** equipment obtained from the West was mainly used to counter the Russian army on Ukrainian territory and would not be used to attack the Russian mainland.
But soon, there were a number of incidents of drone attacks on the depths of Russia. If the sovereignty of the four eastern oblasts and Crimea is disputed, and Ukraine can say that this is its own territory, then the targets of the Belgorod region, the center of Moscow, and the Engels airbase are irrefutably on Russia itself. Therefore, Ukraine has long broken the red line drawn by itself.
The Ukrainian side's approach is not to end the war, but to continue the war. Because Zelensky came to power by being anti-Russian, once he talks with Russia, he will soon be replaced. Therefore, when the political circles in the United States and Europe have recently released their hopes for armistice negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, Zelensky has been running around, continuing to look for military assistance and political support, and will fight Russia to the end.
Militarily, the Ukrainian army continued to organize long-distance sneak attacks on targets in depth of the Russian army many times, sent ** into Russia to assassinate patriotic Internet celebrities, and even sabotaged transportation lines in the Russian Far East. The main purpose of these attacks is to provoke hatred and eliminate the possibility of peace talks between the two sides.
Although the downing of the Russian transport plane made Ukraine lose points morally, it was able to further undermine the atmosphere of peace talks, which was in the hands of Zelensky. The Russian army is as careless as ever and continues to suffer. The families of the 65 prisoners of war suffered the most, and their last hope was dashed.
Project Sword