KUALA LUMPUR, July 17 — The European Union (EU) reiterates its call for Russia to accept responsibility for the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 ten years ago and to fully cooperate in serving justice.
Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the downing of MH17 over eastern Ukraine today, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said it reiterates its full support for all efforts to establish truth, justice and accountability, in accordance with the United Nations' Security Council Resolution 2166.
“On July 17, we honour the memory of the 298 innocent people, including 80 children of 17 nationalities who lost their lives in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 ten years ago.
“The ten-year commemoration brings back very painful memories. We renew our deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the victims,” he said in a statement.
On November 17, 2022, the District Court of The Hague sentenced three individuals to life imprisonment for their role in the downing of Flight MH17.
Meanwhile, Borrell said the EU emphasises that the evidence presented by the Joint Investigation Team in the proceedings before the Dutch District Court and submitted to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) makes it abundantly clear that the BUK surface-to-air missile system used to bring down Flight MH17 belonged beyond doubt to the armed forces of the Russian Federation.
“No Russian disinformation operation can distract from these basic facts established by a court of law,” he said.
The EU takes note of the proceedings initiated by the Netherlands against the Russian Federation at the ECHR, as well as the proceedings initiated by Australia and the Netherlands before the ICAO, which are important steps towards achieving truth, justice, and accountability.
The MAS commercial flight MH17 departed at 12.15pm (local time) from Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and was scheduled to arrive in Kuala Lumpur at 6.10am (Malaysian time) on Friday, July 18.
However, at 10.15pm (Malaysian time), MAS received information from the Ukrainian Air Traffic Control (ATC) that it lost contact with Flight MH17 at 1415 (GMT), at a position of 30km from Tamak, about 50km from the Russia-Ukraine border.
On November 17, 2022, the Hague District Court sentenced two former Russian intelligence agents, Igor Girkin and Sergei Dubinskiy, along with Ukrainian separatist leader Leonid Kharchenko, to life imprisonment after finding them guilty on charges of causing the crash of MH17 and the murders of all 298 people on board.
Another Russian, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted of the same charges.
Girkin, Dubinsky, and Kharchenko were also ordered to pay over €16 million (RM75.26 million) in compensation to the relatives of the victims.
The court concluded that MH17 was shot down by a Russian-made BUK missile from an agricultural field in eastern Ukraine, citing extensive evidence that did not leave “any possibility for reasonable doubt whatsoever”.
— Bernama
