The Russian invasion The helicopter crash

The Russian invasion The helicopter crash  

Ukraine's interior minister killed in helicopter crash  

Ukraine's Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi was among those who died when a helicopter crashed in Brovary on the outskirts of Kyiv on Wednesday morning, the country's police chief said, according to Reuters.  

Deputy Minister of the Interior Yevhen Jenin and Jury Lubkovytj, State Secretary at the Ministry of the Interior, also died in the crash. The three heads of government traveled aboard the rescue service's helicopter on their way to the front.  

Monastyrskyi, who turned 42, was appointed interior minister in 2021. He is the highest-ranking Ukrainian government official to die during the invasion. 

- A great loss for the government and the entire state. My heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims, says Prime Minister Denys Sjmyhal, adding that the crash will be thoroughly investigated.  

At least 14 people died in the crash, which occurred near a preschool and homes. One of them was a child. 25 people were injured, including ten children.  

The cause of the crash is unknown. 

Denys Monastyrskyj/President Zelenskyj's wife Olena Zelenska reacts to the death sentence. AP  

The Russian invasion The helicopter crash  

Analysis: Heavy loss of young EU-oriented minister  

The loss of Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi is devastating for the Ukrainian government at this stage of the war, writes the BBC's foreign affairs reporter James Waterhouse in an analysis. 

“He was a prominent figure in President Zelensky's cabinet. We could often see him at major events, unfortunately often similar to this one, around the country.” 

SVT's foreign reporter Bengt Norborg calls the incident "a huge break and a tragedy for Zelensky and his government."  

According to SR's Russia correspondent Maria Persson Löfgren, Monastyrskyj was not a particularly well-known or prominent minister, but nevertheless an important part of the government's younger, Europe-oriented layer. 

"He belonged to a generation with roots in the Maidan movement, which participated in protests and since 2013 demanded that Ukraine become part of Europe and gain EU membership."

Volodymyr Zelensky. Kiur Kaasik/Delfi Meedia/TT  

The Russian invasion The helicopter crash  

Zelenskyi: Terrible tragedy - the pain is indescribable  

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, who is in Switzerland's Davos for the World Economic Forum meeting, has commented on Wednesday's helicopter crash on Telegram. This is reported by AFP.

"Today a terrible tragedy occurred in Brovary, Kyiv region. One of the rescue helicopters crashed, and a fire broke out at the impact site. The pain is indescribable," writes the president.  

Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyj, Deputy Interior Minister Jevhen Jenin and Jury Lubkovytj, State Secretary at the Ministry of the Interior, died in the accident. The helicopter crashed in Brovary on the outskirts of Kyiv on its way to the front in the east. 

In total, at least 14 people died, including one child. 25 people, including ten children, were injured. The crash, the cause of which is unknown, happened near a preschool.

Ihor Klymenko Wikimedia Commons.  

 

The Russian invasion The helicopter crash  

Ukraine's police chief becomes temporary interior minister  

 

Ukraine's national police chief Ihor Klymenko has been appointed acting minister of the interior, according to Prime Minister Denys Sjmyhal, according to Reuters.  

 

The announcement was made on Wednesday afternoon following the death of Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyj in a helicopter crash on the outskirts of Kyiv in the morning. 

 

Ukrainian police have adjusted the death toll down to 14, including one child. 25 people were injured, including ten children.  

 

Olaf Scholz/impact site. AP 

 

The Russian invasion The helicopter crash 

Germany offers help to investigate the crash 

 

Germany has offered Ukraine help to investigate Wednesday's helicopter crash, which killed Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyj and at least 13 other people, AFP reports.  

 

The announcement was made by German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Twitter. Chancellor Olaf Scholz also expresses his condolences after the crash. 

 

"Our thoughts are with the loved ones of the victims and the injured on this sad day," he writes, adding that the incident shows "the enormous price Ukraine is forced to pay in this war."  

 

It is unclear what caused the accident, which happened near a preschool in Brovary on the outskirts of Kyiv. Three of the dead and ten of the injured were children.