UIA plane downing: International group reacts to Iran's refusal to negotiate
This is stated in the joint statement of the Group.
As noted, the Coordination Group asked Iran to commit to engaging in negotiations with the Group by January 5, 2022.
“Unfortunately, on December 27, 2021, we received an unequivocal response from Iran that it does not see a need to negotiate with the Group,” reads the statement.
It is noted in the document that Iran initially agreed to engage with the Group during the first round of negotiations held on July 30, 2020. However, Iran is now categorically rejecting any further negotiations with the Group related to collective demand for reparations.
“We will not stand for this affront to the memories of the 176 innocent victims. Despite our best efforts over the past two years and multiple attempts to resolve this matter through negotiations, the Coordination Group has determined that further attempts to negotiate with Iran on reparations for the destruction of Flight PS752 at this time are futile. The Coordination Group will now focus on subsequent actions to take to resolve this matter in accordance with international law,” the statement underscores.
The foreign ministers representing Canada, Sweden, Ukraine, and the United Kingdom, state that they will never forget the 176 innocent passengers and crew who lost their lives on January 8, 2020.
“We remain united in our commitment to hold Iran accountable for the actions and omissions of its civil and military officials that led to the illegal downing of Flight PS752 by ensuring that Iran makes full reparations for its breaches of international law,” the members of the International Coordination and Response Group for the victims of Flight PS752 emphasize.
On January 3, the Superior Court of Justice of the Canadian province of Ontario awarded CAD 107 million (about USD 90 million), plus interest, to the families of six people who died in the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752.
On January 8, 2020, the Ukraine International Airlines plane (Flight PS752) heading from Tehran to Kyiv crashed shortly after taking off from the Imam Khomeini International Airport. There were 176 people on board – nine crew members (all Ukrainians) and 167 passengers (citizens of Ukraine, Iran, Canada, Sweden, Afghanistan, Germany, and the UK). All of them died.
On January 11, Iran admitted that its military had accidentally shot down the Ukrainian passenger jet. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) accepted full responsibility for the downing of the Ukrainian airliner.
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