Ukraine: UN political chief says adverse security conditions hampering full access to crash site

 UN, 19 September 2014 – Two months after the crash of a Malaysia Airlines flight over Ukraine that killed 298 people on board, the top United Nations political official updated the Security Council on developments related to the investigation of the incident.

“While the cease-fire in south-eastern Ukraine, thus far, is holding, contributing to a marked de-escalation on the ground, the conditions are still not conducive for investigators to have full and unfettered access to the site,” said Under-Secretary General for Political Affairs Jeffrey Feltman.

On 17 July, the Boeing 777 carrying 298 people was en route from Amsterdam to the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, when it went down in eastern Ukraine, near the Russian border. In the days that followed, the Security Council adopted resolution 2166 (2014) calling for a full, thorough and independent investigation into the incident.

Today Mr. Feltman briefed the Council on a report released on 9 September by the Dutch Safety Board, which submitted its preliminary findings on the MH-17 accident investigation to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

The report contains the first factual findings based on various sources, including the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder, air traffic control data, as well as radar and satellite images.

While last week’s Dutch report is preliminary, it does assert that MH17 broke apart over Ukraine due to penetration by a large number of “high energy objects from outside of the aircraft,” said Mr. Feltman.

The report also notes that the aircraft was in “airworthy condition” with no indication that it had any technical or operational issues. The crew was properly licensed and no human error had been reported. The report confirms no distress messages had been received prior to the crash.

Mr. Feltman told the Council that the process of identifying further remains is still ongoing. Thus far, 225 bodies have been identified. This is when unobstructed access to the crash site is critical.

• “Winter will soon arrive in Ukraine, at which time it will become almost impossible to retrieve further remains and to collect further evidence,” explained Mr. Feltman.

“We understand that international investigators will again endeavour to access the crash site, both for repatriation of any further remains and to continue gathering physical evidence toward the completion of the technical report,” he added.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon continues to reiterate his call on all those with influence on the situation to exert it immediately to create a “promising security environment” for investigators, he said.

Mr. Feltman commended the Netherlands for playing played a pivotal role in leading the investigation. In addition, Australia, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Malaysia, the Russian Federation, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, the United States, as well as ICAO and the European Aviation Agency, have also helped the investigation.

He said that ICAO will continue to provide its full support to the Netherlands, in conjunction with its international team, while we await the conclusions and recommendations eventually will be contained in the Final Report.

On 29 July, ICAO convened a special Task Force on Risks to Civil Aviation arising from Conflict Zones (TF RCZ), which has met twice to-date. The TF RCZ will meet again in December for a next round of talks and will also convene another high-level safety conference with all its 191 member states in February 2015.

“Let us honour the victims and console their families by never letting it happen again,” said Mr. Feltman. 
un.org
19/9/14

G7 powers warn Russia of more sanctions over Ukraine

Washington. The leaders of the world's major developed economies condemned Russia for destabilizing Ukraine on Wednesday and warned it faces still tougher sanctions if it does not change course, AFP reported.
"Russia still has the opportunity to choose the path of de-escalation, which would lead to the removal of these sanctions," the G7 powers said, in a joint statement released by the White House.
"If it does not do so, however, we remain ready to further intensify the costs of its adverse actions."
The G7 - Britain, France, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States - issued the statement one day after Washington and the European Union announced increased sanctions on Moscow.

"We once again condemn Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, and actions to de-stabilize eastern Ukraine. Those actions are unacceptable and violate international law," the group said.
"We condemn the tragic downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and the deaths of 298 innocent civilians. We demand a prompt, full, unimpeded, and transparent international investigation."
The G7 powers said Moscow should use its influence with pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine to enable air crash investigators and OSCE monitors to operate in safety.
They demanded that Russia get behind a ceasefire plan being pushed by Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko and support efforts to find a political solution to a conflict with a rising civilian death toll.
 http://www.focus-fen.net/news/2014/07/30/344200/g7-powers-warn-russia-of-more-sanctions-over-ukraine.html
30/7/14
-------------------

• G-7 Leaders Statement on Ukraine (The White House)

Office of the Press Secretary,  July 30, 2014:
"We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States, the President of the European Council, and the President of the European Commission, join in expressing our grave concern about Russia’s continued actions to undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence.  We once again condemn Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea, and actions to de-stabilize eastern Ukraine.  Those actions are unacceptable and violate international law.

We condemn the tragic downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and the deaths of 298 innocent civilians.  We demand a prompt, full, unimpeded, and transparent international investigation.  We call upon all sides to establish, maintain, and fully respect a cease-fire at and around the crash site, as demanded by UN Security Council resolution 2166, so that the investigators can take up their work and to recover the remains of all victims and their personal possessions.

This terrible event should have marked a watershed in this conflict, causing Russia to suspend its support for illegal armed groups in Ukraine, secure its border with Ukraine, and stop the increasing flow of weapons, equipment, and militants across the border in order to achieve rapid and tangible results in de-escalation.

Regrettably, however, Russia has not changed course.  This week, we have all announced additional coordinated sanctions on Russia, including sanctions on specific companies operating in key sectors of the Russian economy.  We believe it is essential to demonstrate to the Russian leadership that it must stop its support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine and tangibly participate in creating the necessary conditions for the political process.
We remain convinced that there must be a political solution to the current conflict, which is causing rising numbers of civilian casualties.  We call for a peaceful settlement of the crisis in Ukraine and underline the need to implement President Poroshenko’s peace plan without any further delay.  To this end, we urge all parties to establish a swift, genuine, and sustainable general cease-fire on the basis of the Berlin Declaration of 2 July with the aim of maintaining Ukraine’s territorial integrity.  We call upon Russia to use its influence with the separatist groups and ensure effective border control, including through OSCE observers.   We support the OSCE and the Trilateral Contact Group as central players in creating the conditions for a ceasefire.

Russia still has the opportunity to choose the path of de-escalation, which would lead to the removal of these sanctions.  If it does not do so, however, we remain ready to further intensify the costs of its adverse actions."
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/07/30/g-7-leaders-statement-ukraine
30/7/14

MH17 crash: MEPs call for solidarity with Ukraine and sanctions against Russia.

EU sanctions against Russia must be stepped up, the Ukrainian border closed to halt arms flows from Russia, and the bodies of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crash victims returned, MEPs insisted in today’s debate with Ukraine’s foreign minister Pavlo Klimkin. Mr Klimkin called on the EU to show its solidarity now, as Ukraine is “being punished for its EU aspirations”. The debate opened with a minute’s silence for victims of the 17 July crash.


Mr Klimkin stressed that the MH17 crash was not just an incident but a “vicious narrative” for the whole of Europe. “Before we were talking about self-defence of inhabitants of eastern Ukraine, whereas now it’s clear that we are dealing with Russian-backed terrorists”, he said. The Ukraine government is ready to engage in discussion with “the real people of Donetsk”, but “the Russian terrorists have to go back to Russia”, he added.

• The EU must send a clear message of solidarity with and support for Ukraine, which he said was now “being punished for its EU aspirations”, and strengthen the EU presence on the ground by deploying a Common Security and Defence Policy mission, he urged.

• “Ukraine’s security services should have full control over the border to ensure that the flow of arms from Russia can be dried up” said Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Elmar Brok (EPP, DE). He added that the actions of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin left open no “possibility of finding a political solution” and that the EU should therefore proceed with much stronger sanctions against Russia.

• MEPs called for a united line between EU member states on tougher sanctions towards Russia, not as a consequence of the plane crash, but in reaction to the Russian authorities' unwillingness to control the flow of arms and heavy weapons across the border to the eastern regions of Ukraine.

Some also criticized France for training Russian solidiers, given that hundreds of Dutch people had lost their lives in the plane crash. “My government will not stop until justice is done”, said Dutch Ambassador Peter De Gooijer, who also spoke at the meeting. He stressed that his government’s first priority was to have the victims’ bodies returned home and then to conduct an independent investigation. He deplored the disrespectful way in which the bodies of the victims had been treated and said that this would not be forgotten by the Dutch people.
 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/news-room/content/20140722IPR53223/html/MH17-crash-MEPs-call-for-solidarity-with-Ukraine-and-sanctions-against-Russia
22/7/14
--
-

• Moscow Surprised by Countries Voicing Theories on Boeing Crash Before Investigation (Russian FM)

• MH17 Flight Crashed Within Ukrainian Missile Systems Firing Range (Russian Military)

• Malaysian jet 'shot down' over Ukraine (with 295 people on board)

MH17 Flight Crashed Within Ukrainian Missile Systems Firing Range (Russian Military)

The Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 crashed within the operating zone of the Ukrainian army’s self-propelled, medium-range surface-to-air Buk missile systems, the Russian military said Monday.
"The flight scheme indicates that the plane’s route and possible point of destruction fall into the operational range of Buk air defense systems deployed by the Ukrainian armed forces,” Lt. Gen. Andrei Kartapolov, the head of the Main Operations Directorate of the HQ of Russia’s military forces, said during a media conference in Moscow.

The Russian military published some of the data gathered as part of the probe into the July 17 Boeing crash during the briefing.

Russian monitoring systems detected up to four Ukrainian Buk M1 air defense systems in the crash area on the day of the accident, the Russian general said.
“Why would the Ukrainian military deploy this weaponry…if, as we all know, the armed militia [in eastern Ukraine] does not have aircraft?” the general queried.

Kartapolov also said the intensity of Ukrainian air defense system radar stations increased dramatically on the day of the MH17 crash.........http://en.ria.ru/military_news/20140721/191082525/MH17-Flight-Crashed-Within-Ukrainian-Missile-Systems-Firing.html
21/7/14
--
-
Related:

• Malaysian jet 'shot down' over Ukraine (with 295 people on board)

• Moscow Surprised by Countries Voicing Theories on Boeing Crash Before Investigation (Russian FM)

Moscow Surprised by Countries Voicing Theories on Boeing Crash Before Investigation (Russian FM)

Russian Foreign Ministry said Saturday it was baffled by several countries imposing pressure on investigators by voicing their theories about the causes of the Malaysia Airlines Boeing-777 crash in eastern Ukraine.

"It is baffling that even before the start of the investigation, official representatives of a range of countries rushed to groundlessly announce their theories on the causes of the accident, thus putting pressure on the investigation process. The Russian side addresses both sides of the Ukrainian conflict with an urgent call to do everything possible for the access of international experts to the area of the plane crash to carry out all the actions necessary to investigate the mentioned air crash," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry underlined that Russia was the first to call for an independent and transparent investigation into the cause of the crash, with an international format that would allow avoiding unilateral evaluations.

"It [the investigation] must be international and conducted with the decisive participation of ICAO [International Civil Aviation Organization], and other international institutions, including the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC), which involves Russian and Ukrainian representatives along with others," said in the statement....................http://en.ria.ru/politics/20140719/191039845/Moscow-Surprised-by-Countries-Voicing-Theories-on-Boeing-Crash.html
19/7/14
--
-

• Malaysian jet 'shot down' over Ukraine (with 295 people on board)

Malaysian jet 'shot down' over Ukraine (with 295 people on board)

A Malaysian airliner was brought down over eastern Ukraine, killing all 295 people aboard and sharply raising the stakes in a conflict between Kiev and pro-Moscow rebels in which Russia and the West back opposing sides.
Ukraine accused "terrorists" - fighters aiming to unite eastern Ukraine with Russia - of shooting down the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 with a heavy, Soviet-era SA-11 ground-to-air missile as it flew from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.
Leaders of the rebel Donetsk People's Republic denied any involvement, although around the same time their military commander said his forces had downed a much smaller Ukrainian transport plane. It would be their third such kill this week.


Journalists saw burning and charred wreckage bearing the red and blue Malaysia insignia and dozens of bodies strewn in fields near the village of Hrabove, 40km from the Russian border near the rebel-held regional capital of Donetsk.
Al Jazeera's Rory Challands, reporting from Moscow, said the plane fell in an area controlled by pro-Russian separatists.
"The investigation would be very difficult given that it's controlled by the rebels," he said. "Ukrainian officials are saying that many children were dead. Some are saying that all died. Reuters is reporting that body parts were found at the scene. It seems that it was a very gruesome scene."
Despite the shooting down of several Ukrainian military aircraft in the area in recent months, including two this week, and renewed accusations from Kiev that Russian forces were taking a direct part, international air lanes had remained open.
Dutch news channel RTL said at least 76 Dutch citizens were aboard the aircraft. A Ukrainian official said there were 23 US citizens. France said at least four of its citizens were on board.

Wreckage and bodies
Malaysia Airlines said air traffic controllers lost contact with flight MH17 at 1415 GMT as it flew over eastern Ukraine towards the Russian border, bound for Asia with 280 passengers and 15 crew aboard.
Flight tracking data indicated it was at its cruising altitude of 33,000 feet when it disappeared.
That would be beyond the range of smaller rockets used by the rebels to bring down helicopters and other low-flying Ukrainian military aircraft - but not of the SA-11 system which a Ukrainian official accused Russia of supplying to the rebels.

"I was working in the field on my tractor when I heard the sound of a plane and then a bang," one local man at told Reuters news agency at Hrabove, known in Russian as Grabovo.
"Then I saw the plane hit the ground and break in two. There was thick black smoke."
An emergency worker said at least 100 bodies had been found so far and that debris was spread over 15 km. People were scouring the area for the black box flight recorders and separatists were later quoted as saying they had found one.
"MH17 is not an incident or catastrophe, it is a terrorist attack," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko tweeted. He has stepped up his military campaign against the rebels since a ceasefire late last month failed to produce any negotiations.
Russia, which Western powers accuse of trying to destabilise Ukraine to maintain influence over its old Soviet empire, has accused Kiev's leaders of mounting a fascist coup.
It says it is holding troops in readiness to protect Russian-speakers in the east - the same rationale it used for taking over Crimea.

• Ukrainian Interior Ministry official Anton Gerashchenko said on Facebook: "Just now, over Torez, terrorists using a Buk anti-aircraft system kindly given to them by Putin have shot down a civilian airliner flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur."

The Buk is a 1970s vintage, truck-mounted, radar-guided missile system, codenamed SA-11 Gadfly by Cold War NATO adversaries. It fires a 5.7-metre, 55-kg missiles for up to 28km...............http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/07/report-malaysian-jet-crashes-near-ukraine-2014717151147473508.html
17/7/14
--