responsible for the Boeing MH17 crash in the skies over Ukraine in 2014.
This was announced yesterday by Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
Previously, the investigation team working on the case of the crash of the liner had indeed announced the completion of its mission, noting that it had done everything possible. Investigators also pointed out that responsibility for the disaster lies with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The conclusions of the investigation are supported in particular by the wiretapping of a conversation between the head of the Republic of Crimea appointed by Moscow, Sergei Aksyonov, and his assistant. During the conversation, the official said that decisions on the supply of weapons to Donbass separatists are made by the first person of the state.
This, according to independent experts, is indicated by the whole nature of the adoption of decisions of fundamental importance in Russia.
At the same time, the Dutch prosecutor’s office noted that Putin could be prosecuted after losing his legal immunity upon leaving the presidency.
Moscow denies any involvement in the disaster which claimed the lives of more than two hundred civilians.
Recall that shortly after the disaster, the US Embassy in Ukraine reported that the diplomatic department had information that “at the time communication with flight MH17 was lost, a surface-to-air missile hit was launched from the territory of south-eastern Ukraine controlled by the separatists. In addition, during the negotiations intercepted by the special services, the separatists repeatedly mentioned the Buk complexes, that they were involved in the transport , and the range of Ukrainian air defense systems did not include the area of the plane crash, moreover, Ukrainian troops did not launch any surface-to-air missiles at that time.
“Putin already carries a huge burden of guilt”
The summary of the Dutch investigation into Putin’s responsibility seems very logical, noted Andrey Kolesnikov, senior researcher at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (USA), in an interview with the Russian service media. According to him, this is also demonstrated by the fact that the Russian president always prefers to be involved in the adoption of all important military-political decisions.
“Of course, such a serious issue as the delivery of the Buk abroad was certainly coordinated at the highest level of management,” he is sure. – But for now, we can only assume that the criminal order in one form or another was given directly by Putin. From a legal point of view, the evidence was apparently not sufficient for the investigation. This seems to explain the generally minor tone of their statement. And they clearly did not have to hope for help from the Russian side. Moscow did everything to make the investigation of the crime as difficult as possible.
We will learn the whole truth about the events of those days only after the fall of the regime, said Andrei Kolesnikov. However, in his opinion, in any case, the commander-in-chief should be responsible for what happens in his army: “Therefore, no one has taken away Putin’s moral responsibility and never will take it away. The same goes for all the aggressive actions he has taken since at least 2014, including against Ukraine. Many of them fall under the category of international crimes. Putin already carries a huge burden of guilt.
As the Dutch prosecutor’s office rightly said, Putin still has immunity, remaining president, the expert from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace recalled: “If he loses immunity, he will certainly have big problems. He can be charged with various charges and initiate criminal proceedings. Although there is a high probability that these problems will be absent. But here much will depend on what will happen to Russia in the coming years.
Putin understands everything perfectly, which forces him to cling even more tightly to power, stressed Andrey Kolesnikov.
“Besides, he’s basically holding the entire elite hostage. He’s taken everyone in his submarine, which has plunged into unreality. And they’ll all float together or sink together… The main danger here is the unpredictability of the situation,” he concluded.
“Since Putin is the commander-in-chief, it couldn’t have happened without him”
In turn, Russian opposition politician Gennady Gudkov, in a comment to media, called the Dutch investigators’ conclusion “absolutely expected and predictable.” It seems to him that the Buk facility could not end up on the territory of a foreign state without the will of the Russian President, this was clear from the very beginning.
“Naturally, such decisions require the approval of the highest political leaders in the country,” he added. – Well, since Putin is the commander-in-chief, it could not have done without him. It is clear to the child. Well, all Moscow’s versions of the causes of the tragedy were subordinated to one goal – to cast a shadow over the fence and escape responsibility. However, this has already become common practice in Kremlin politics in general: denying the obvious and calling black people white, and the sun the moon.
It is clear that it was essentially an international terrorist attack, committed in aggravating circumstances, says Gennady Gudkov.
“Such crimes have no statute of limitations, and hypothetically Putin could, and should, become the main defendant in this case. I hope one day that will happen. But that is why the dictator will cling to power until the end. He has too much blood on his hands…”, concluded the politician.
