The Council of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) officially placed responsibility on the Russian Federation for the disaster of flight MH17, which was shot down in the sky over Donbas in 2014. About this reported Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.
According to the ICAO Council, Russia’s actions contradict the provisions of the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation, in particular the rule prohibiting the use of weapons against civilian aircraft in the air.
In the coming weeks, ICAO is to consider compensation for damages from Russia. In March 2022, Australia and the Netherlands – the countries whose citizens made up the majority of those who died as a result of the tragedy – filed a complaint with the ICAO about the actions of the Russian Federation. In June 2024, Russia announced the termination of participation in the case, not recognizing ICAO’s jurisdiction over the matter.
The international investigative team, which included representatives of Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, the Netherlands and Ukraine, established that the plane was destroyed by a shot from the Buk anti-aircraft missile complex, which was delivered from the territory of Russia and was under the control of pro-Russian militants.
In November 2022, a court in the Netherlands found guilty of the intentional destruction of a plane and the murder of three people — in particular, the former “minister of defense” of the “DPR” group Igor Girkin (pseudonym Strelkov), who were sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment. Another defendant was acquitted.
The disaster occurred in July 2014, when a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was shot down over the territory of Donbas. 298 people died. This tragedy is one of the deadliest in the history of civil aviation.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiga commented on the decision of the ICAO Council, calling it another step towards restoring justice for the crime that happened with flight MH17.
“This is also a clear signal: no matter how much money and effort Russia invests in lies and concealment of its crimes, the truth wins and justice prevails.”, he emphasized.
Sybiga also expressed his gratitude to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Kaspar Veldkamp and the head of the Australian Foreign Ministry Penny Wong, calling this decision “a joint victory that is extremely important for the families of those killed in the MH17 tragedy.”
