Russia rejects UN ruling on 2014 downing of Malaysian airliner

The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected as biased a ruling by the U.N. aviation council that Russia was responsible for the downing of a Malaysian airliner over Ukraine in 2014 that killed all 298 passengers and crew. “Our position is well known. You know that Russia was not a country that took part in the investigation of this incident, so we do not accept any biased conclusions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Malaysian Airlines Flight MH17 departed from Amsterdam for Kuala Lumpur on July 17, 2014, and was shot down over eastern Ukraine as fighting raged between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces. The victims included 196 Dutch citizens and 38 Australian citizens or residents. In November 2022, Dutch judges convicted two Russian men and a Ukrainian man in absentia of murder for their role in the attack. Moscow called the ruling “scandalous” and said it would not extradite its citizens.
The International Civil Aviation Organization’s Council on Tuesday held Russia accountable for the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine more than a decade ago, a decision that could pave the way for compensation to the families of the 298 victims. A Dutch-led international investigation concluded in 2016 that the Amsterdam-to-Kuala Lumpur airliner was shot down on July 17, 2014, from Ukrainian territory held by separatist rebels using a Buk missile system delivered from Russia. Moscow denies any involvement in the MH17 tragedy. The Netherlands and Australian governments brought the case against Moscow before the Montreal-based global aviation agency in 2022 and on Tuesday welcomed the verdict.
The International Court of Justice wasn't an option because Russia doesn't recognize The Hague, Netherlands-based court’s jurisdiction. The council found that Russia had violated the Convention on International Civil Aviation, known as the Chicago Convention, which requires that states "refrain from resorting to the use of weapons against civil aircraft in flight.” It's the first time that the council, which represents 193 member states, has decided a dispute between governments.