Russia leaves debate between Australia and Netherlands in case about MH17 downing

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia has claimed that it will stop considering the claims of Australia and the Netherlands to the International Civilian Aircraft Organisation (ICAO) regarding the downing of the MH17 flight above Ukraine in July 2014.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry claims that it was not given the opportunity to participate in the investigation of the MH17 catastrophe and considers the conclusions drawn by the international investigation to be inaccurate.

"In such conditions it is impossible to talk about an unbiased establishment of facts, leave alone a fair decision. The ICAO council is not a suitable place for seeking the truth," Russia’s Foreign Affairs Ministry claims.

Besides blaming the West, Russia ends its statement saying it "ends its participation in this farce" and does not recognize the Council’s authorisation "to consider the claims by Australia and the Netherlands, as well as any decisions it will make in connection with them".

Australia and the Netherlands initiated a court case against Russia in the ICAO due to the downing of a MH17 Malaysia Airlines flight in March 2022.

As it is known, the Hague District Court sentenced Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinsky and Leonid Kharchenko to life in prison in absentia for their role in downing the MH17 liner above Ukraine’s Donbas and ordered their arrest. The court obliged them to pay over €16 million of compensation to the families of the deceased.

The Hague court also judged that Russia controlled the unrecognised Donetsk People’s Republic when the MH17 plane was downed.