Unnamed officials insisted someone else provided the missile to Ukraine, however
The American-supplied Patriot launcher was used in the January 24 shooting down of the Russian Il-76 transport over Belgorod, the New York Times confirmed on Thursday, citing anonymous US officials.
The plane was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners scheduled to be exchanged that afternoon, along with three observers and six crew. There were no survivors. Ukraine initially claimed the kill, then said the planes were legitimate targets because they had been delivering missiles, then called for an investigation into what happened.
Reports that a Patriot missile had been used to shoot down the plane “were accurate,” officials told the Times privately, on condition of anonymity, as the US government had no public comment. The missile was supplied to Ukraine by “a European partner,” the officials claimed, without naming the country.
In addition to the US, Germany and the Netherlands have supplied Kiev with the Patriot systems and missiles.
American officials also told the NYT the Ukrainian military may not have known the POWs were on board and that the strike was based on “legitimate but flawed intelligence” because the same plane had been used to transport Russian missiles.
It “appeared probable that at least some” people on board may have been Ukrainian prisoners, but Russia “may have overstated” the number of deaths, according to unnamed US officials.
“If there were prisoners on the plane, as appears likely, American officials said the loss of life was regrettable,” the newspaper noted.