ICAO finds Russia responsible for the downing of flight MH17
The Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has ruled that Russia is responsible for the downing of flight MH17 and that the country violated the Chicago Convention by illegally using weapons against a civilian aircraft.
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This decision was made during a meeting in Montreal as part of the case brought by the Netherlands and Australia in 2022 against Russia over the downing of flight MH17 on 17 July 2014. Dutch Foreign Minister Kaspar Veldkamp noted that this is an important step towards establishing truth and justice for the relatives of the flight's victims.
It is expected that the ICAO Council will soon consider how legal redress should be implemented. The Netherlands and Australia called on the ICAO to oblige Russia to start negotiations on this issue to ensure that negotiations are conducted in good faith and within a specified timeframe.
The decision was taken by vote, with the majority of the Council members supporting the position of the Netherlands and Australia. ICAO is a specialised UN agency that unites 193 countries. According to the Chicago Convention, all its members are prohibited from using weapons against civilian aircraft.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof called the decision an important step towards justice. He stressed that the Netherlands will continue to seek to establish the truth and bring Russia to justice.
As a reminder, on 17 November 2022, the District Court of The Hague found three Russian-linked militants guilty of shooting down the plane and killing 298 people, sentenced them to life imprisonment and ordered them to pay €16 million in compensation.
The Malaysia Airlines passenger Boeing-777 was shot down over the occupied territory of Donetsk region on 17 July 2014. There were 283 passengers and 15 crew members on board, all of whom died. The International Investigation Team confirmed that the plane was shot down by a Buk missile system belonging to the 53rd Air Defence Brigade of the Russian Armed Forces stationed in Kursk.
Source: Rijksoverheid
