Russian government flight to US sparks mystery and speculation
On December 26th, one of the Special Flight Squadron "Russia" aircraft flew to New York and Washington, D.C., and remained in the United States for two days. It is unknown who was on board the Ilyushin Il-96-300, which is used by Russia's highest officials, including heads of special services. When asked about this matter, Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated, " Another diplomatic rotation."
The independent Russian channel BAZA on Telegram was the first to report on the mysterious flight of the Russian government plane, questioning who traveled to the USA and for what purpose.
According to FlightRadar data, on December 25th, one of the Special Flight Squadron "Rossiya" planes took off from Moscow and flew to St. Petersburg. On December 26th, it flew from St. Petersburg to New York and, after a short break, proceeded to Washington, D.C.
The aircraft stayed there for two days. On December 28th, the Russian plane took off again from Washington, D.C., to New York and then returned to Moscow, reports the BAZA channel on Telegram.
Russia's top leadership is known to use this plane for official trips. Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have previously flown on it. SVR head Sergey Naryshkin has also used the Ilyushin Il-96-300, and Vladimir Putin also flies a plane of the same type.
Who was on board this plane this time? It remains unknown. The purpose of the individuals' visit to the USA is also undetermined. There is no official information regarding any Russian delegation that was supposed to visit the USA.
Behind-the-scenes talks between the Kremlin and Biden and Trump's people?
The BAZA channel suggested that the mysterious flight might be linked to behind-the-scenes talks between the Kremlin, Joe Biden's administration, and associates of President-elect Donald Trump. The channel recalled comments made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Sunday morning, the day after the plane returned to Russia.
Lavrov stated that Moscow is not satisfied with proposals from Donald Trump's team concerning Ukraine. "Of course, we are not pleased with the proposals submitted on behalf of representatives of the president-elect's team to postpone Ukraine's NATO membership for 20 years and to introduce a peacekeeping contingent of 'British and European forces' into Ukraine," Lavrov said.
Sergey Lavrov also mentioned that in talks with the Joe Biden administration, which is authorized to liaise with Moscow on behalf of Washington before Trump's inauguration, there is no discussion of negotiations regarding Ukraine.
This issue has attracted the interest of Russian media. Journalists asked Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova about the mysterious flight to the USA. She dismissed them with a brief statement: "another diplomatic rotation."
Source: Telegram/BAZA, ria.ru
