MH17: International Community Must Step Up Pressure On Russia - Expert

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 30 (Bernama) -- The international community needs to step up pressure on Russia to provide all assistance necessary to allow justice to take its course on the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, said an expert. Deputy director and Senior Fellow of the Institute of Malaysia and International Studies, National University of Malaysia (UKM), Dr Sufian Jusoh said the international community should also pressure Russia to agree on the setting up of a tribunal to bring justice over the victims. "Russian President Vladimir Putin needs to cooperate by assisting the next of kin to obtain justice for the demise of their innocent family members, relatives and friends," he said in a statement, here, Thursday. Sufian said based on the latest revelation on the MH17 investigation, the next of kin of the victims of the downed MH17 might bring civil cases against the person they thought was liable for the mishap under the tort law. "In this case, they may bring a case against any of the following, namely the Russian Buk missile manufacturer, the shooter, the commanders and even against the Russian or Ukrainian government," he said. Therefore, Sufian proposed that the Malaysian court be appointed as the most suitable forum for any legal action as the ill-fated aircraft belonged to Malaysia and Malaysian law could be made applicable. "However, this depends on whether the Netherlands would agree to this arrangement as most of the victims were Dutch, and whether Russia would agree to hand over the perpetrators who could be Russian ethic separatists based in Ukraine," he said. On Wednesday, the Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) concluded in the interim report that MH17 was shot down by a Buk 9M38 missile which was brought from Russia to Ukraine. Head of the Dutch National Detective Force, Wilbert Paulissen said JIT found that the Buk missile defence system was later transported back to Russia after the plane was downed, killing all on board. MH17 with 298 passengers and crew on board was shot down over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014 while en route to Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam. --BERNAMA