The Ukrainian Prime Minister has expressed his sympathy for the Australians killed in the MH17 disaster, while calling for all countries, most importantly Russia, to cooperate with the investigation and repatriation of bodies.
"We stand by Australian people, Ukrainians mourn and pray for all families who lost their beloved in this despicable act of violence,” Arseniy Yatsenyuk tells Mark Davis in an interview for SBS’s Dateline.
He says he's determined that Russia will face justice for the downing of the Malaysia Airlines plane with the loss of 298 people, including at least 37 Australian citizens and residents.
“This is an international crime, this is the global threat, and we are to bring to justice everyone responsible, including those who are and were behind this, those who supplied the weapons and those who trained these Russian-led guerrillas… and this is the Russian Federation,” he says.
As international anger about the attack and the chaotic access to the crash site grows, Yatsenyuk says Moscow still holds the key.
“We are doing everything. On the one hand we can’t have any kind of official talks with these guerrillas, but on the other hand we have an unofficial communication… in order to allow Ukrainian experts and international experts to conduct a full investigation.”
“We are fully aware and we are absolutely sure that if Moscow goes and gives a direct order to these separatists, Russian-led terrorists, they execute everything Moscow says,” he told Mark.
Dutch investigators will lead the investigation, but Yatsenyuk says all the countries involved must take part.
“We invite everyone to participate in this international investigation… the more respective governments involved in this investigation, the more truth we can get.”
“We’ve got some evidence already and Ukrainian authorities approached the crash site and we are ready to issue a preliminary report, but we want to have this report independent, full-fledged and internationally approved.”
Yatsenyuk says he was also appalled by images of passengers’ personal possessions being looted, but says the Ukrainian authorities have been able to take control.
“I was shocked with this footage, but as Ukrainian emergency services approached the crash site and as we deployed 810 people, so we somehow calmed down the situation and took the control over the situation in these crash site areas,” he says.
“Russians did nothing, and we urged Russian President and Russian regime to de-escalate the situation, to stop the supply of weapon and lethal ammunition to all these guerrillas, to stop the financing of them, to condemn them, and to withdraw all Russian agents that are still located in the area… this would be the best response.”
“We don’t trust any words, we trust actions… no real actions on the Russian side… let’s wait and see, but I don’t trust them,” he says.
“My government will do everything for peace and stability… to get peace you have to fight,” he says as his final thought at the end of the interview.
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