MH17 anniversary: Russia must answer for the crime, Kyiv calls for cooperation of all countries

17.07.2023 13:17

Ukrinform

On the anniversary of the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expressed its condolences to the families and relatives of all the passengers and crew members of the plane who died, and also called on all states to cooperate in bringing Russia to justice.

This is said in a statement published on the website of the Ukrainian MFA, Ukrinform reports.

“The downing of Flight MH17 is one of the most howling pages of the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine and made it clear that the actions of the aggressor state have consequences for the entire world community,” the statement says.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs called on all states and parties involved to fully cooperate in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2166 (2014) to hold Russia and all those guilty accountable for this shameful and brutal violation of international law.

According to the statement, Ukraine welcomes the decision by the District Court of The Hague, which found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment three people responsible for shooting down Flight MH17, and also welcomes the decisions of the Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the European Court of Human Rights, which found its jurisdiction to consider disputes regarding Russia's violation of its international legal obligations.

The ministry noted that during oral hearings at the International Court of Justice in June 2023, Ukraine emphasized Russia's violations of the provisions of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, in particular, through the transportation of lethal weapons to the territory of Ukraine, which led to the downing of Flight MH17.

“Ukraine will continue to make all possible efforts to establish justice for the victims of the tragedy, hold Russia and all guilty accountable and have guarantees of non-repetition of such a tragic incident,” the statement says.

Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down over occupied area of Donetsk region on July 17, 2014. There were 283 passengers and 15 crew members on board. All of them died. Last November, the Hague District Court sentenced Russian citizen Sergey Dubinskiy and Ukrainian citizen Leonid Kharchenko to life imprisonment for their participation in the fatal Boeing 777 crash over Ukraine in 2014.