President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed on Thursday “important decision” A court in The Hague, Netherlands, has sentenced three men, including two Russians, to life for the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014. “Important decision by the Hague Court”., greeted the president of Ukraine on Twitter, a few minutes after the verdict of the Dutch justice. All 298 passengers and crew were killed when the Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur flight was shot down over eastern Ukraine by pro-Russian separatists in what prosecutors said was a missile supplied by Moscow. The three men were convicted in absentia, refusing to participate in the two-and-a-half-year trial.
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“Political” decision
“For all the crimes of Russia, both yesterday and today, the punishment will be inevitable.”Zelensky added that Kiev blames Moscow “war crimes” in separate Ukrainian regions occupied by the Russian army since the end of February. The President of Ukraine welcomed them “first judgments”. “But it is necessary that (all) the instigators appear in court, because the feeling of impunity leads to new crimes.” he was lamenting. So he called “dispel this illusion” that international justice will not find and convict the guilty“atrocities” in the current conflict with Russia.
Russia, in turn, condemned the decision “Politics”. “The course of the trial and the result indicate that (the decision) is based on a political order.”– responded the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation in a press release. “The trial in the Netherlands will probably become one of the most scandalous in the history of judicial proceedings”, he added. Russia vehemently denies responsibility for the downing of the plane and accuses the Dutch court of ignoring elements that it believes exonerate the three convicted defendants. “Throughout the trial, the court came under unprecedented pressure from Dutch politicians, representatives of the prosecutor’s office and the media, who forced an outcome of the trial for political reasons.”condemned the Russian diplomacy.
In his turn, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kouleba welcomed “A large-scale joint effort between Ukraine, the Netherlands, Belgium, Australia and Malaysia”. during the investigation. “Today’s verdict sends a message to Russia. no lie can escape justice.”he said on Twitter. The United States also welcomed this verdict. “The decision of this court in The Hague is an important step in the effort to bring justice to the 298 people who lost their lives on July 17, 2014.”The head of American diplomacy, Anthony Blinken, announced this in a press release.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.