Russia’s Lavrov says ‘no facts’ support accusations on MH17

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says the Netherlands has provided "no facts" to support its allegation that Moscow was responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014.

The top Russian diplomat said on Friday that he had been informed by a Dutch minister that "they have practically no doubt that the BUK (missile) came from Russia." Lavrov added, "I asked him about facts proving these claims. He did not give me any facts."

The Russian foreign minister accused Amsterdam of merely speculating "to achieve their own political goals."

The Netherlands and Australia "hold Russia responsible for its part in the downing" of MH17, the Dutch government said in a statement on Friday.

On Thursday, Dutch prosecutors investigating the disaster announced that a missile system purportedly from the 53rd anti-aircraft brigade of the Russian Armed Forces had been allegedly employed to shoot down the passenger plane. The crash took the lives of all 298 people on board. Two thirds of the victims were Dutch.

Flight MH17 on a Boeing 777 was blown out of the sky over conflict-hit eastern Ukraine on July 17 that year while en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. Moscow has time and again denied any involvement in the disaster, putting the blame instead on Kiev.

The Friday statement added that the Netherlands and Australia could move toward submitting the complex dossier to an international judge or organization.

The Russian Defense Ministry has also rejected the findings of the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT), saying that although the BUK missile, which the JIT says was allegedly used to down MH17, had indeed been manufactured in the Soviet Union in 1986, "all the missiles made that year were withdrawn from service in 2011." Those missiles made in 1986 "most likely belong to the Ukrainians," it added.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union and "the division of military material," Ukraine which possessed some 20 BUK anti-aircraft systems has "not had one new missile delivered," the ministry said.

Russia mistrusts JIT’s conclusions

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that Russia mistrusted the findings of the JIT since it had not been invited to participate in the investigation.

"I want to repeat the president’s words to you, the investigation was carried out in the Netherlands, this investigation team did not include the Russian side, though the Ukrainian side was represented," Peskov told reporters.

"Certainly, without having the possibility to be a full-fledged party, Russia does not know to what degree the conclusions of this endeavor can be trusted," he added.

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