West vs. Putin over Malaysian plane’s downing

Obama, Merkel and international experts point to the Pro-Russian separatists as culprits for the downing of flight MH17

The huge sunflower fields surrounding the Ukrainian village of Hrabove have turned in the last few days into a scene of death, tragedy and mourning.

The lifeless bodies of the 298 passengers of the ill-fated Boeing 777 of Malaysian Airlines remained for several hours under the hot sun, as bulky uniformed men forbade anyone from approaching them, in the first hours after the accident.

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Three days after the air disaster that has plunged Malaysia, Netherlands, Australia and six other countries into mourning, the countries involved are still locked in an exchange of accusations.

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On the one hand, Obama, Merkel and international experts from several European countries point to the Pro-Russian separatists as culprits for the downing of flight MH17 and, on the other, Russia claims that the downing was the work of provocateurs.

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At the same time, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, invited the Russian president to take responsibility and said that he was shocked at the pictures of utterly disrespectful behaviour at the tragic spot, referring to allegations that bodies of the passengers, including 193 of his countrymen, were being allowed to decay at the scene.

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However, the Russian government denies the accusations of U.S. officials. Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, said Washington had got caught up in a “geopolitical frenzy” and was deeply misguided in its perception of events in Ukraine.

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In defense of the Russian-speaking separatists, a Russian expert explained that the rebels don’t have the experience and the technical skills needed to use a system as complicated as a Buk missile.

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Meanwhile, the British Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond has warned Vladimir Putin that the “world’s eyes are on Russia to make sure she delivers” on her obligations to the victims killed in theUkraine plane disaster.