Malaysia’s government must seek reparations from Moscow over the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines flight 17, experts say, as Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim begins a four-day visit to Russia, which has been declared responsible for shooting down the passenger jet, killing all 298 people on board.
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The Council of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on Monday ruled that Russia was to blame for the tragedy, after the plane was shot down over eastern Ukraine by a Russian-made missile during a conflict between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists.
The ruling was announced just as Anwar left for Moscow on Tuesday for an official visit at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invitation. The two leaders are scheduled to meet on Wednesday.
“This is not just about Malaysia’s right, but also our duty to seek justice,” said Farhatul Mustamirrah Mahamad Aziz, an international law expert with Universiti Teknologi Mara.
“That and our diplomatic ties with Russia are two different things. The downing of MH17 is about the loss of lives.”
MH17 was shot down by a Russian-made BUK surface-to-air missile while travelling over Ukraine’s Donetsk region on July 17, 2014.