EU foreign policy chief commemorates victims of downing flight MH17 on 10th anniversary

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) – The EU foreign policy chief on Wednesday commemorated the 10th anniversary of the downing of flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine, killing all the 298 people on board.

"The ten-year commemoration brings back very painful memories. We renew our deepest sympathies to the families and friends of the victims," Josep Borrell said in a statement.

Borrell reiterated the bloc's "full support" for all efforts to establish truth, justice, and accountability in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2166.

On July 17, 2014, MH17, which was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down over eastern Ukraine. All 298 passengers and crew members were killed, including 196 Dutch, 43 Malaysians, and 38 Australians.

In 2022, a court in the Netherlands awarded life sentences to three people, including Russians Sergey Dubinskiy and Igor Girkin, as well as Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko, who were found guilty of causing the crash while another Russian, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted on all charges.

However, Moscow rejected the verdict, calling it a "scandalous" decision by a Dutch court announced under unprecedented pressure and denied any involvement in the downing of the plane.

The EU states that the evidence from the Joint Investigation Team, presented before Dutch and international courts "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," Borrell said.

"No Russian disinformation operation can distract from these basic facts, established by a court of law," he underscored.

He called on Moscow to "accept its responsibility in this tragedy" and to cooperate fully in serving justice.