Australia Wants Russia to Accept Responsibility for Downing of MH17

Photo from Ukrinform – UATV

Australia is calling on Russia to accept responsibility for its role in the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 in 2014.

The Netherlands also supports the findings of the Dutch-led JIT (joint investigation team), head of the Australian Foreign Office, Marise Payne said following a meeting between the representatives of the countries that participated in the investigation.

The team determined that civilian passenger plane, flight MH17 – which had 298 people aboard – was downed by a BUK missile that was shot from the Russian Federation’s 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade in Kursk, in western Russia.

“We regret that Russia has not accepted the factual findings of the JIT to date and reiterate that Australia has full confidence in the impartiality, independence, and professionalism of the JIT and in its findings,” Payne said.

Australia has gotten acquainted with the interim results of the investigation of the causes of the disaster and fully recognizes them, Payne said. All members of the group who met at the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York reaffirmed their dedication to establishing the truth and bringing to justice those who should take responsibility for downing the Boeing 777, which was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014, when it was shot over eastern Ukraine.

“My Dutch counterpart, Stef Blok, also took this opportunity to brief our colleagues from the other JIT countries on our decision to hold Russia responsible, under international law,” the minister said.