Russia set to block MH17 UN vote
July 25, 2015
The vote on the proposal by Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands and Ukraine to create an international tribunal is set for Wednesday afternoon. The resolution would require all countries to cooperate with the special tribunal or face sanctions.
But on Friday, Russian UN Ambassador Vitaly Churkin rebuffed the proposal. "This is not a proper thing for the Security Council to do because it's not a case of a threat to international peace and security," he said.
Ukraine is among a number of countries which accuse pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine of shooting down the Malaysia Airlines plane with a Russian-made missile in July 2014.
It crashed in territory held by the separatists, killing all 298 people on board. The majority of passengers on the MH17 flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur were Dutch.
Russia has objected to the formation of a tribunal, calling instead for the completion of an ongoing investigation, with conclusions expected in October.
Churkin said he had not received definitive instructions from Moscow on how to vote on Wednesday but commented: "I have a very strong feeling that it's not going to lead to a result that will be satisfactory for the Security Council." He added: "We are against it."
On July 21, 2014, the Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution demanding that those responsible "be held to account and that all states cooperate fully with efforts to establish accountability."
Led by the Dutch, Malaysia, Australia, Belgium and Ukraine are conducting a criminal inquiry into the downing of flight MH17.
The Dutch Safety Board is expected to issue a final report on the cause of the crash in October.
jm/cmk (AFP, Reuters)