Ukraine’s top leadership was killed in a helicopter crash
2023.01.18 11:44
Ukraine’s top leadership was killed in a helicopter crash
By Kristina Sobol
Budrigannews.com – When a helicopter crashed into a nursery and set it ablaze in a suburb of the capital, Kyiv, on Wednesday, at least 14 people were killed, including the interior minister of Ukraine and a child.
Several children, as well as dozens of other people, were injured, with many suffering from burns. The Super Puma helicopter, which was built in France, crashed into the nursery grounds in Brovary, which is on the eastern edge of Kyiv.
According to the Ukrainian state emergency services, 14 people had died altogether. Up to 18 deaths had previously been reported by government agencies.
One of the dead was Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi, who was aboard the helicopter. Since the Russian invasion in February of last year, when the war began, he was the most senior official to die in Ukraine.
A frantic rescue was described by residents.
“We saw children and wounded individuals. Everything was scattered around in this dense fog. “We ran toward them when we heard screams,” local resident Hlib, 17 years old, told Reuters. We removed the children from the nursery, which was on fire, and carried them across the fence.
The nursery building’s entire side was charred. There was a large gap above the entrance. The helicopter’s wreckage was crumpled against the entrance of an apartment building and was scattered over a muddy playground nearby.
Under foil blankets that were draped over the bodies, several dead men were lying in a courtyard wearing blue uniforms and black boots that could be seen.
The 56-year-old Vitaliy claimed that he saw the aircraft rapidly descend and land on the nursery’s grounds before falling further into the apartment complex.
He stated, “I thought it was something very large, like the engine from a rocket or something like that.”
An investigation into what Volodymyr Zelenskiy called a “terrible tragedy” was ordered by the president.
He said in a statement, “The pain is unspeakable.”
In the state emergency service helicopter, Monastyrskyi and his first deputy, Yevheniy Yenin, as well as other ministry officials, perished. Monastyrskyi was replaced as acting interior minister by national police chief Ihor Klymenko.
The crash’s cause was still unknown, according to officials. There was no immediate mention of a Russian attack.
Air Force spokesperson Yuriy Ihnat stated, “Unfortunately, the sky does not forgive mistakes, as pilots say, but it is really too early to talk about the causes,” adding that an investigation could take at least several weeks.
According to the SBU State Security Service, it would take into account a number of possible causes, including an intentional destruction, a technical issue, or a violation of flight regulations.
Monastyrskyi, a 42-year-old lawyer and lawmaker who was appointed in 2021 to lead the ministry that is responsible for the police, received condolences and tributes from Western leaders.
Fighting and aid separately, Ukraine reported additional fighting overnight in the east, where both sides have suffered significant losses for negligible gains over the past two months in intense trench warfare.
According to the Ukrainian military, Ukrainian forces repelled attacks in the eastern city of Bakhmut and the nearby village of Klishchiivka. Russia has been focusing on Bakhmut in recent weeks, claiming last week to have captured the northern outskirts mining town of Soledar.
Over the past two months, the frontlines have become more rigid following significant gains made by Ukraine in the second half of 2022. Kyiv says it hopes that this year will see the introduction of new Western weapons, particularly heavy tanks that would provide its troops with mobility and protection as they push through Russian lines.
Canadian Defense Minister Anita Anand visited Kiev and pledged 200 Senator armoured personnel carriers as the most recent aid announcement.
On Friday, Western allies will gather at a U.S. air base in Germany to provide Ukraine with additional weapons. Germany is the focus of particular attention because it has the right to veto any decision regarding where to send its Leopard tanks, which are used by European armies and are widely considered to be the best fit for Ukraine.
Poland and Finland have already stated that, subject to Germany’s approval, they will send Leopards. Boris Pistorius, Germany’s new defense minister this week, is said to be the first person on his agenda to make a decision, according to Berlin.
Attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Lithuania’s foreign minister stated that he anticipated a decision to send tanks: This is what I’m hearing here from other leaders, so I’m confident. Gabrielius Landsbergis stated to Reuters that there is momentum.
Zelenskiy was scheduled to speak to Davos via video link later on Monday.
“Victory is assured, I have no doubt about it,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said while visiting an air defense factory in St. Petersburg.
According to Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, negotiations with Zelenskiy were not possible and there were no prospects for peace talks. According to Russia, talks can only take place if Ukraine acknowledges Moscow’s claims to Ukrainian territory; Kyiv declares that it will fight until Russia leaves Ukraine as a whole.
Zelenskiy stated in his nightly video address that a missile that struck an apartment block on Saturday killed 45 civilians in the center of Dnipro, including six children, one of whom was 11 months old.
The attack, which killed the most civilians in a three-month Russian missile bombardment campaign against cities far from the front, still has 20 missing.
Moscow denies aiming at civilians with intent. It claimed that Kyiv’s growing ties to the West posed a security threat when it launched what it called its “special military operation” in Ukraine last year.
In what Kyiv and the West describe as an unprovoked invasion meant to subjugate Ukraine and seize its land, tens of thousands of people have been killed and millions forced to flee their homes.
