Mysterious Russian flight sparks speculation in Washington
One of the Special Flight Squadron "Russia" aircraft flew to New York and Washington, D.C., on the second day of Christmas. It spent two days in the United States. It is unclear who was on board the Ilyushin Il-96-300, a plane used by high-ranking Russian officials, including heads of special services. When journalists inquired about the flight, Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responded, "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 travelled to the USA and for what purpose.
According to FlightRadar data, on December 25, one of the planes from the Special Flight Squadron "Rossiya" took off from Moscow to St. Petersburg. On December 26, this aircraft flew from St. Petersburg to New York and, after a short break, continued to Washington, D.C.
The aircraft remained there for two days. On December 28, the Russian plane departed from Washington, D.C., to New York and then returned to Moscow, reports the BAZA channel on Telegram.
This plane is known to be used by the top leadership in Russia for official flights. Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have both traveled on it. The Ilyushin Il-96-300 has also been used by Sergey Naryshkin, the head of the SVR. Vladimir Putin flies a plane of the same type.
Who was on board this plane this time? It remains unknown. Additionally, the purpose of the visit to the USA by these individuals has not been officially disclosed. There is no official information about a Russian delegation visiting the USA.
Behind-the-scenes talks between the Kremlin and Biden and Trump's people?
The BAZA channel speculated that the mysterious flight might be related to behind-the-scenes discussions between the Kremlin and the administration of Joe Biden, along with individuals from President-elect Donald Trump's team. They referenced a statement by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made on Sunday morning, shortly after the plane returned to Russia.
Lavrov mentioned that Moscow is dissatisfied with proposals from Donald Trump's team concerning Ukraine. "Of course, we are not pleased with the proposals submitted by 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 stated.
Sergey Lavrov also commented that, in discussions with the Joe Biden administration, which is authorized to represent Washington in interactions with Moscow before Trump's inauguration, there is no talk of negotiations regarding Ukraine.
The issue has garnered attention from Russian media, and journalists questioned Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova about the mysterious flight to the USA. She dismissed the inquiries with a succinct statement: "another diplomatic rotation."
Source: Telegram/BAZA, ria.ru
