London says damage to a Russian spy plane in Belarus is a blow to Putin’s invasion of Ukraine

The bone British intelligence services indicated that the damage allegedly suffered by a Russian military aircraft who remained stationed in Belarus will “further limit” Russian air operations in the invasion of Ukraine.

“The claim of authorship and damages has not been officially substantiated. However, the loss of a A-50 Pillar would be significant, as it is crucial for Russian air operations to provide an aerial picture of the battlefield,” they said, according to a series of messages released by the British Ministry of Defense through its website.

“This will likely leave six A-50s operational, which will further limit Russian air operations,” they pointed out, before pointing out that the device serves as a “control platform” and “early warning”. “Its role is to create a recognizable aerial image and coordinate attached combat aircraft,” they explained.

They also said the plane had been located by “lay aircraft spotters” after taking part in joint maneuvers between January 16 and February 1, while they pointed out that the opposition Association of Security Forces of Belarus (BYPOL) said on Monday it was behind the incident and caused damage to the A-50.

The leader of the BYPOL, Alexander Azarov, claimed that “participants in the operation are Belarusians” and clarified that the plane was hit by several explosions in its front and central parts. “The damage is serious, the plane will not fly anywhere,” the organization said.

For his part, the dictator of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenkodid not make direct mention of what happened, although he met several senior state officials on Monday, including the ministers of defense and interior, Viktor Jrenin and Ivan Kubrakovrespectively, who he asked to step up “discipline”.

Russia and Belarus They have jointly participated in various military exercises in recent months. Although Minsk was not directly involved in the Ukrainian conflict, it allows the Russian side to use its territory as a base of operations.

According to reports from a Belarusian opposition groupAnd Russian spy planeworth around $330 million, was destroyed in a drone strike near Minsk, the capital of Belarus.

Members of the Belarusian opposition in exile said they destroyed during a secret mission a military spy planenamed A-50U by Vladimir Putin.

The operation would have been carried out with two unmanned aerial vehicles, which left the country, according to him. Frank Viacorkaclose adviser to the leader of the opposition Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.

According to the report, the front parts and the central part of the plane Beriev A-50U AWACSand the radar antenna, were destroyed by the explosion.

The plane reportedly fell on the air base of Machoulishchynext to Minskaccording to the Belarusian anti-government organization BYPOL.

“Partisans (…) have confirmed the success of a special operation to blow up a rare Russian aircraft at Machulishchy airfield near Minsk,” Viacorka posted on his Twitter account.

“This is the most successful hijacking since the start of 2022,” he added.

(With information from Europa Press)

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