UNITED NATIONS, February 6. /TASS/. The city of Lisichansk was chosen by Ukrainian troops as a target for a shelling attack deliberately, Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said.
"No doubt that the target and the timing of the attack were chosen deliberately. The city is located near the combat engagement line and regularly comes under shelling from various types of weapons. There are not many places to spend days off there. The neo-Nazi deliberately chose a moment when people go for a walk on weekend and cynically attacked the only place of entertainment in Lisichansk," he said at a meeting of the UN Security Council, which was called at Russia’s request.
Russia has evidence
Nebenzya also said, Russia has conclusive evidence that the Russian Il-76 plane carrying Ukrainian POWs was shot down from a US-supplied Patriot system.
"Since the January 25 meeting, called at our request, Russia’s investigation has made serious progress. <…> Today, we have irrefutable evidence that a Patriot system had been used [to hit the plane]. It leave no room for doubt that Washington is a direct accomplice in this crime as well," he said at a meeting of the UN Security Council.
He noted that the US Department of State "has not commented this information in any way, hypocritically suggesting that this be done by Kiev."
Nebenzya condemned the Il-76 crash as a deliberate terrorist act committed by the Ukrainian military. "Let me remind you that the Kiev regime was well aware of plans for a [prisoner] exchange. It was well aware, as well, what means of transportation would be used and by what route POWs would travel," he emphasized.
The Il-76 plane was shot down over Russia’s borderline region of Belgorod on January 24. There were 74 people on board, including 65 Ukrainian POWs, all of whom were killed. The Russian Defense Ministry condemned the incident as a terror attack, stressing that Kiev knew beforehand about the transport of the prisoners for a scheduled exchange.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the Russian military plane was downed from a US-made Patriot surface-to-air missile (SAM) system. He also said that Moscow insisted on an international probe into the air crash.