Pursuing Russia over MH17

There never has been much doubt about the culpability of the Russian state in shooting down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014, a gross attack in which 298 people, including 38 Australian citizens and residents, were killed. An international team of investigators based in The Netherlands, including Australian Federal Police commander Jennifer Hurst, has confirmed that the 9M38-series Buk missile that downed MH17 belonged to the Russian Federation’s 53rd anti-aircraft missile military brigade. As Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says, the finding raises questions about why a sophisticated weapon deliberately was taken into Ukraine and deployed to shoot down a civilian aircraft. It was established previously that Russia’s 53rd anti-aircraft brigade transported the missile from its base in Kursk, in western Russia, to Ukraine.

Last night, Malcolm Turnbull and Ms Bishop announced Australia and The Netherlands had notified Russia “that we hold it responsible for its role in the downing” and asked for negotiations about the circumstances leading to the tragedy.

Australia, Belgium, Malaysia, The Netherlands and Ukraine, rightly, also are considering holding Russia to account via a prosecution. Investigators still have more to do in gathering evidence but have trimmed the list of suspects from more than 100 to several dozen. Eventual suspects would probably be tried in absentia in The Netherlands because Russia vetoed a UN Security Council resolution seeking to create an international tribunal to deal with the atrocity.

If Vladimir Putin had any illusions about leading a civilised nation, he would apologise and provide restitution to the families of those who died and to the airline. Instead, Russia has waged a relentless disinformation campaign to deny involvement. Tony Abbott, who was prime minister at the time, was correct when he said Russia was at risk of becoming a “rogue state”, especially in view of other outrages such as the chemical weapons attack against former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in England.