Nearly four years after the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over Ukraine, family members of the victims onboard the passenger jet continue to seek justice.

On Friday, the Netherlands and Australia announced they were holding Moscow legally responsible for its role in the missile attack.

The announcement came a day after international prosecutors said they had unequivocal evidence of Russian involvement in the downing of a Malaysian passenger jet.

Don Shahidan Kassim, a relative of Dora Shahila Kassim, the chief stewardess onboard MH17, said he hopes the Malaysian and Australian governments will take action against Russia.

On Thursday, a Dutch-led international team of investigators said they had strong evidence that the Buk missile system that brought down the Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur flight came from a Russia-based military unit, the 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade based in the Russian city of Kursk.

It was the most explicit link yet published by the investigators between Moscow and the downing of the flight known as MH17.

Kuala Lumpur - 26 May 2018

1. Don Shahidan Kassim, relative of Dora Shahila Kassim, Chief stewardess on Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, looking at photo book

2. Close of Don Shahidan Kassim's hands flicking through photo book

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Don Shahidan Kassim, relative of Dora Shahila Kassim, Chief stewardess on Malaysia Airlines Flight 17:

"All of the next of kin expect justice because being that a passenger plane, how come an army such as the Russians would shoot it down? Whatever reason they have, they should not shoot the plane down. So we want justice, so we want our government and others, I think the Australian government, people want justice, so we are still pursuing it and hope the Malaysian government will still pursue it as a next of kin we are really hoping for justice."

4. Photo of Dora (screen bottom left), tilt up to photos of other crew members of MH17

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Don Shahidan Kassim, relative of Dora Shahila Kassim, Chief stewardess on Malaysia Airlines Flight 17:

"It has been four years already, this coming 17 July, four years already. And we are not informed, any (no) government has been able to take action against the Russian government, so we are still hoping but if the Australian government is able to take action against the Russian, we are happy with it because we want justice. I think also that the Australian people want justice but it's been four years and we do not know whether this year or next year or the next coming five years our government or the other governments will be able to prosecute Russia about this issue."

6. Don Shahidan Kassim looking at photo book

7. Close of photo of Dora

A private memorial was held on Thursday in Putrajaya, Malaysia, for the victims of the MH17 flight, marking three years since the plane was shot down over Ukraine.

The Amsterdam-to-Kuala Lumpur Flight Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down on July 17, 2014, by a Buk surface-to-air missile over conflict-torn eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.

International investigators have concluded that the Buk missile that shot down the plane was fired from Russia-backed rebel-controlled territory by a mobile launcher trucked in from Russia and hastily returned there, a finding that Moscow rejects.

The Malaysian Transport Minister, who attended the memorial on Thursday, said he is "convinced" that he will find the culprits of the plane's downing.

Some relatives of the victims attended the memorial, which was private and sealed off the press.

"We're teenagers so we can't really grasp or except everything, but we do know that Malaysia Airlines and all the governments are doing their best to get the those who shot MH17.

So we just wait and pray that's all," said Anwar Zafran, a relative of 19-year-old Mohamad Afif Tambi, who died on the plane along with his entire family.

Putrajaya, Malaysia – 13 July 2017

1. Media

2. Hall entrance

3. Malaysia Airlines Chief Executive Peter Bellew at MH17 meeting (filmed through glass)

4. Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai approching media

5. SOUNDBITE (English) LIow Tiong Lai, Malaysian Transport Minister:

"Everything is very detailed (the investigation) and we are quite convinced that we will be able to find the culprits."

6. Lai with media

7. SOUNDBITE (English) LIow Tiong Lai, Malaysian Transport Minister:

"The person who actually launched the BUK missile to come forward to tell us what is actually happening on that particular day, because we're very sure that it is a BUK missile, it's from land to air missile which shot down MH17."

8. Father of son who died on board plane Mohamad Salim

9. MH17 pin

10. SOUNDBITE (Malay) Mohamad Salim bin Sarmo, 68-year-old father of MH17 flight victim:

"We leave everything to the investigating team, there's nothing much we can do."

11. Salim with photographers

12. Various of Salim with picture of son Mohamad Ali who died onboard MH17

13. SOUNDBITE (Malay) Mohamad Salim bin Sarmo, 68-year-old father of MH17 flight victim:

"What we're told inside was that they (investigation team) have all the information that they need and are awaiting the time to proceed."

14. Nur Sabrina and Anwar Zafran, cousins of 19-year-old Mohamad Afif Tambi who died onboard plane along with entire family

15. SOUNDBITE (Malay) Anwar Zafran,18-year-old relative of MH17 flight victim:

"We're teenagers so we can't really grasp or except everything, but we do know that Malaysia Airlines and all the governments are doing their best to get those who shot MH17. So we just wait and pray, that's all."

16. Various of T-shirt created by Afif Tambi, who perished on MH17 flight

17. Sign (Malay) saying "3rd memorial event to commemorate MH17"

18. Security

FILE: Hrabove - 19 July 2014

19. Rescuers carrying bodies from crash site

20. Rescue team carrying body

21. Wide of bodies in black body bags lying on side of road

22. Pro-Russia rebel at crash site

23. Wide of bodies in body bags at edge of crash site

24. Travelling shot of body bags

25. Rescuers and journalists near crash site

26. Ambulance crew watching rescuers searching for victims

27. Rescuers preparing to move another body

28. Wide of rescuers in field

Ukraine marked the fourth anniversary of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 tragedy on Tuesday.

Four years ago, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was shot down by a missile over eastern Ukraine. 298 passengers and crew were killed as a result.

International prosecutors have said earlier this year they had unequivocal evidence of Russian involvement in the downing of the Malaysian passenger jet.

In May, a Dutch-led international team of investigators said they had strong evidence that the Buk missile system that brought down the Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur flight came from a Russia-based military unit, the 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade based in the Russian city of Kursk.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected the findings.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Kiev, Ukraine – 17 July 2018

1. Pan of woman leaving candle at Dutch embassy in Kiev to commemorate the victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17

2. Close of photo of victim

3. Close of flowers

4. Pan from media to flowers

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Peter Ahgendooen, from Holland:

"Or course it is a terrible thing to happen and now trying to bring perpetrators to court it is very difficult, because everybody knows that it was Russia involved. The proof is 100 percent, I would say it's water tight. To get (Russian President Vladimir) Putin or his military to admit that Russian soldiers were in Ukraine, that will never happen I guess. Because if he (Putin) admits that, he is violating international law by sending officially troops into the neighbouring country."

6. Various of Kostyantyn Smolyn, local resident, leaving flowers

7. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Kostyantyn Smolyn, local resident:

"Today it's a very tragic day, because this is a crime that happened here and so many people, children died. Crimes were not punished and we don't want it to be so, we want it to be fair. And we want relatives of victims to not stay in suspense. I hope that the trial will happen soon and the guilty people will be punished. And that such crimes will never happen again."

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Hrabovo, Donetsk Region, Ukraine – 17 July 2018

8. Wide of people standing with flags of countries whose citizens died on MH17: Belgium, Philippines, United Kingdom, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Canada, Germany, Australia

9. Various of people with portraits of victims

10. People laying flowers at the memorial of the crash site

11. Close of memorial

12. People with white balloons at the crash site

13. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Oleksandra (no last name given), local resident:

"I was in my garden and saw it flying over my garden (the plane) and being destroyed in the air. I fell down and smashed my face. People were running away in Hrabovo, shouting."

14. Wide of the crash site

The Russian military said on Monday that the missile that shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, killing all 298 people on board, came from the arsenals of the Ukrainian army, not from Russia.

The jet was shot down by a Soviet-made missile over rebel-held eastern Ukraine in July 2014, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the Russian border, where fighting had been raging for months between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatists.

Associated Press reporters sighted a Buk missile system not far from the site just hours before the plane crash.

The Netherlands and Australia announced in May that they believe the missile was transported to Ukraine from a military unit in the Russian city of Kursk.

Russia has vehemently denied involvement and has over the years offered various theories as to the cause of the crash.

Lt. Gen. Nikolai Parshin, chief of the Missile and Artillery Directorate at the Russian Defense Ministry, told reporters on Monday that the military had studied and declassified archives at the research centre outside Moscow that produced the Buk missiles, after the Dutch investigators displayed parts of the missile and their serial numbers.

Parshin said the Russian archives show that the missile that was made of these parts was transported to a military unit in western Ukraine in 1986, and to Russia's knowledge never left Ukraine.

The media was allowed to photograph and film what the ministry said were records showing the transfer.

Asked about the possibility that the separatists may have seized the missile system during fighting in 2014, Defence Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov conceded that Russia does not have any documents proving otherwise but pointed to the statements of Ukrainian officials who have denied that separatists seized any of their Buks.

Moscow - 17 September 2018

1. News conference

2. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Lieutenant-General Nikolai Parshin, head of the Main Missile and Artillery Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

"886847379 - this rocket was sent in December 1986, to the 223 antiaircraft brigade, Unit 20152, in the Ukrainian Socialist Republic, and now is the part of Ukrainian military forces. Rocket no 886847379 belongs to Ukrainian military forces and didn't come back to the territory of Russian Federation. We have already notified the Dutch side."

3. Various of reports showing the rocket transfer, media

4. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Konashenkov, Major General and chief spokesman for the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

"Highly qualified Russian experts have analysed videos and came to the conclusion, that they are falsified."

++AUDIO STARTS ON BLACK FRAME++

5. Video footage on screen showing vehicles with Russian experts talking over (they are videos that Russian experts tried to analyse as part of their investigations), UPSOUND (Russian): "Examples of the unnatural depiction of landscape, rockets and transporters, and some other evidence, say that all of them were taken in different places as static images and then animated to create false videos. Using this simple way to create videos we can place Abrams tank on the streets."

6. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Konashenkov, Major General and chief spokesman for the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

"We have the recording of the telephone conversation of Ukrainian military forces in 2016."

7. Alleged recording of conversation of Ukrainian military forces during military exercises in 2016 shown on screen, UPSOUND (Russian): "If things will go on like that, we will hit another Malaysian Boeing. Tell them that!"

8. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Konashenkov, Major General and chief spokesman for the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

"This voice belongs to the Colonel of Ukrainian Military forces, Grinchak Ruslan Nikolaevich."

9. Media

10. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Konashenkov, Major General and chief spokesman for the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation:

"By hiding this information, Ukraine as member of the international investigation team, abuses it's position and manipulates the investigation."

11. Igor Konashenkov leaving

12. Screen with title reading (Russian): "Briefing of the Russian Ministry of Defence about new facts of crash of Boeing-777 "Malaysia Airlines"

13. Media photographing and filming documents

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: - AP CLIENTS ONLY

SHOTLIST:

ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Bunnik - 24 May 2018

1. Wide of presentation by the Joint Investigative Team

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Jennifer Hurst, Australian Federal Police Commander:

"As we know it was a Buk missile from the 9M38-series. In parts of the plane wreckage as well as in bodies of victims and also on the crash site, different parts of the type of missile were found. These parts were secured by the jet and carefully examined by forensic experts. For example, examinations were conducted into the presence of explosive substances, the elemental composition of certain metal parts and analysis of paints. Also, pieces of debris and parts found on the crash site were visually compared with reference material consisting of various Buk missiles available to the jet. In addition a missile was detonated in a controlled environment so that comparisons could also be made with parts of a detonated missile."

3. Wide of presentation

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Jennifer Hurst, Australian Federal Police Commander:

"All findings from this forensic investigation confirm the earlier conclusion of the jet that Flight MH17 was shot down by a 9M38-series Buk missile."

5. Wide of presentation

STORYLINE:

An international team of investigators on Thursday gave further details about the downing of flight MH17 at a presentation of interim results of the long-running investigation.

Australian Federal Police Commander Jennifer Hurst detailed the analysis that confirmed flight MH17 was shot down by "a Buk missile from the 9M38-series".

At the same event, Wilbert Paulissen of the Dutch National Police said investigators had also confirmed the missile was from the Russian military's 53rd anti-aircraft missile brigade based in the Russian city of Kursk.

The passenger jet was headed from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, when it was was blown out of the sky over eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014. All 298 passengers and crew were killed.

Russia has always denied involvement in the downing of the jet.

===========================================================

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

The families of people killed when a missile shot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine in 2014 set out 298 white chairs outside the Russian embassy in the Hague on Sunday, in a silent protest against what they say is Moscow's lack of cooperation over the disaster.

The chairs - laid out in rows as in a plane - represented the victims who died when a Buk missile fired from territory held by pro-Russia separatist rebels shot down the aircraft on 17 July 2014, killing everybody on board.

The families stood in silence for two minutes after arranging the chairs, with banners including one that read: "Impunity = unacceptable! Someone knows what happened ... Justice for MH17."

The protest came on the eve of the trial in the Hague of three Russians and a Ukrainian charged with murder for their alleged roles in the missile strike.

Russia denies involvement and has dismissed the international investigation that led to the four suspects being charged, saying it was prejudiced against Moscow.

Relatives accuse Russian authorities of seeking to hide the facts about exactly what happened.

Piet Ploeg, who lost his brother, Alex, his sister-in-law and his nephew, said families were not accusing Russia of downing the Boeing 777.

Russia continued to deny involvement, even after prosecutors alleged that the Buk missile system which destroyed the passenger plane was transported into Ukraine from the Russian 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade's base in Kursk and the launching system was then returned to Russia.

The Joint Investigation Team last year named four suspects: Russians Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinskiy and Oleg Pulatov, as well as Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko. None of them is expected to attend the start of the trial on Monday in a courtroom near Schiphol, the Amsterdam airport from which the doomed flight took off.

Families are hoping the trial, expected to last for more than a year, will shed definitive light on exactly what happened.

Jon O'Brien and his wife Meryl have flown to the Netherlands from Australiato watch the trial. Their son, Jack, was among the victims.

"He and all the other people on the MH17 had their lives snatched away. That's the most important thing and all those people will live for the rest of their lives with that grief and loss," he said. "But the trial is important because the truth still matters."

The Hague - 8 March 2020

1. Wide of families of MH17 victims setting up 298 empty chairs representing the number who died on the plane

2. Various of MH17 relatives setting chairs up

3. Pull out from Russian embassy building to protest

4. Wide of chairs

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Piet Ploeg, President of the MH17 next of kin association:

"It's the third time this protest is here and, you know, I think it's very important that the Russians are held responsible for not cooperating with the investigation. We are not accusing the Russians of downing the MH17 with this silent protest, but we are having a protest against the lack of cooperation of the Russian state in the investigation of the downing of MH17, and we want to say 'cooperate and stop obstructing the investigations'."

6. Banner reading in English: "Justice for MH17"

7. Mid of empty chairs

8. Mid of Lucas Schansman, whose nephew Quinn, a Dutch-American citizen, was an MH17 victim

9. Close-up of Quinn Schansman

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Lucas Schansman, uncle of MH17 victim:

"You have to realise that what's happening has nothing to do any more with what's happened in the sky. It's a political event and I think that what we're doing here today, this is truly us making a silent statement to somebody who may have the answers, and I think that is much stronger. Of course, what we are doing is a political statement, for which we want answers and recognition because this is how we feel. And I believe that it's much stronger from our point of view, and let's hope that this enables the process towards the truth."

11. Exterior of Russian Embassy

12. Close-up of Russian flag

13. Mid of banner in Russian reading: "Humanity above politics"

14. Wide of chairs

15. Mid of bench

16. Close-up of sign on bench reading: "Waiting for responsibility and full clarity. In loving memory of all 298 passengers and crew of MH17"

17. Mid of Australian couple who lost their son Jack in MH17

18. SOUNDBITE (English) Meryn O'Brien, mother of MH17 victim:

"Well, what we hope is to witness the start of the trial. And you know, we know it will go for a long, long time, but we decided to be here at the start. And we hope to represent Jack, really, and to see all the thorough and meticulous work that has been done over the past five years come to fruition in actually laying out the evidence for the trial for hopefully the first four people being charged."

19. Close-up picture of Jack

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Jon O'Brien, father of MH17 victim:

"Ultimately, there is no best-case scenario. We're here, the trial is very important, but the most important thing is that Jack is no longer alive, and he and all the other people on the MH17 had their lives snatched away. That's the most important thing and all those people will live for the rest of their lives with that grief and loss, that's the main thing. But the trial is important because the truth still matters. And it's important, as we said, you shouldn't be able to murder 298 people and for there to be no consequences, regardless of who you are, so it's important the truth about that is told."

21. Close-up of banner reading in English: "The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth"

22. Mid of MH17 next of kin

23. Pan of MH17 next of kin and journalists to chairs

Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected charges against Russian citizens for their alleged roles in the downing of a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet over Ukraine five years ago, saying they lack proof.

The international team investigating the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 announced murder charges Wednesday against three Russians and one Ukrainian for their alleged roles in the attack that killed all 298 people on board.

Speaking to reporters Thursday, Putin claimed "there is no proof whatsoever" behind the charges and criticised the investigators, saying they ignored evidence provided by Russia.

He blamed Ukraine for setting the stage for the tragedy, saying they failed to close their airspace to commercial flights despite the separatist fighting in the east.

Putin says Russia remains open for dialogue on the case.

Putin said that Russian private military contractors have been active in Syria, adding that they don't represent the Russian state.

Asked why the government doesn't offer veterans' benefits to private contractors who fought in Syria, Putin said Thursday that they have been there in their private capacity and engaged in "oil exploration."

He added that it was "not the Russian government and not the Russian State" so he wouldn't comment on it.

The statement marked Putin's first acknowledgement that Russian private military contractors were active in Syria.

Russian media have reported that the so-called Wagner Company has sent thousands of mercenaries to Syria, augmenting the Russian military.

The company has been linked to businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin, indicted by the U.S. for meddling in the 2016 elections.

Putin said that Russia doesn't want to regain its Soviet-era superpower clout.

Asked if Russia has regained the Soviet Union's superpower status, Putin said it's not needed.

Speaking after Thursday's call-in show, the Russian leader told reporters that "we don't want to be like the Soviet Union that enforced its way of life and political system on its neighbours, including countries of Eastern Europe."

He noted that the Soviet policy was "counterproductive, too costly and lacking historic perspective" and "it's impossible to force other people to live according to your rules."

Putin charged that the U.S. has failed to learn from Soviet mistakes in a bid for global domination.

Moscow - 20 June 2019

1. Wide of Russian President Vladimir Putin walking up to microphones

2. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"Russia has never tried to escape any responsibility, if she had that responsibility on its shoulders. Those facts that we saw presented as evidences of our guilt do not satisfy us. There is not any proof there. All the facts presented there mean nothing."

3. Putin listening as journalist asks questions

4. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"We have our own version, we have presented it, but unfortunately nobody is eager to listen to us. Until there is a true dialogue, we will not find a right answer and the questions about the tragedy of the airplane and the death of people will be still open."

5. Camera operators filming

6. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"We're not looking for this status, it is not our aim. This notion comprises some elements which are interpreted as imposing its influence on other states and the whole regions".

7. Journalist asking question

8. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"We don't want to be like the Soviet Union that enforced its way of life and political system on its neighbours, including countries of Eastern Europe. It is counterproductive, too expensive and lacking historic perspective. It's impossible to force other people to live according to your rules. But it seems that this sad experience of the Soviet Union is not being taken into account by our Western partners. They are repeating the same mistakes, they are stepping on the same rake."

9. Journalist asking question

10. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"They are not employed by the Russian government. And they don't participate in military operations. They are solving the issues of economic character, to the oil extraction. That is all what it is about."

11. Wide of Putin listening to question

12. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"Of course we recognise that even working on these economic activities, people risk their lives. And, by the way, this is also an investment into the fight with the terrorism, because they fight out these fields from the Islamic State. But that is not Russian government and not the Russian State. So we don't comment on that."

13. Wide of Putin listening

14. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President:

"What am I expecting from this meeting? I expect the continuation of the dialogue. I'm sure that Shinzo (Abe), as well as all of us, want the complete normalisation of relations and the signing of the peace treaty. It seemed to be very close, but now there are some issues appear that postpone the final solution of this issue. But what is completely obvious, and I have spoken about that before, is that the Japanese side and Russia want the complete normalisation of our relations."

15. Wide of Putin leaving

Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte called on Friday for Russia to fully cooperate with the investigation into the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, which was shot down over war-ravaged eastern Ukraine nearly four years ago, killing all 298 people on board.

Earlier on Friday The Netherlands and Australia said they were holding Russia legally responsible for bringing down the plane, in an announcement given by the foreign ministers of both countries

It came a day after international investigators announced that the missile system that brought down the Amsterdam-Kuala Lumpur flight came from a Russia-based military unit.

They displayed photos and videos from social media tracking a large convoy of rocket launchers through Russia.

Russia denies involvement in the July 17, 2014, missile strike that blew the Boeing 777 out of the sky at 33,000 feet (about 10,000 metres) over war-ravaged eastern Ukraine.

Bodies, debris and burning wreckage were strewn over a field of sunflowers near the rebel-held village of Hrabove in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from the Russian border, where fighting had been raging for months.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, rejected accusations of Russian involvement.

He said that Russia has been barred from the international investigation and thus can't trust its results.

The Hague - 25 May, 2018

1. Netherlands Prime Minister Mark Rutte arriving at news conference

2. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands:

"Well, state responsibility comes into play when states fail to uphold provisions of international law, and that's clearly the case. And a state can then be held responsible for breaching one or more of those provisions. This is a legal avenue that the Netherlands and Australia have now chosen to pursue. So my message to the Russians is that we expect them now to fully cooperate with the investigation and to acknowledge their commitment given in Resolution 2166 from 2014 concerning the downing of flight MH17 and their responsibility to follow."

3. Journalists

4. SOUNDBITE( English) Mark Rutte, Prime minister of the Netherlands:

"Because the events yesterday have now unequivocally proved that that scenario is not true."

5. Mark Rutte leaves news conference

A few days before the trial over the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was due to begin, Russia continued to deny any involvement in the catastrophe, denouncing what it called a "media campaign" which was "(manipulating) the facts".

The trial is due to start on Monday in the Netherlands, for three Russians linked to their country’s security and intelligence services, as well as a Ukrainian rebel commander.

Neither Russia nor Ukraine extradites its citizens, and the suspects are expected to be tried in absentia under Dutch law.

They are accused of mass murder for their alleged roles in shooting down the Boeing 777 on July 17, 2014, as it passed over conflict-torn eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 passengers and crew.

Russia has consistently denied involvement in the downing, even after prosecutors alleged that the Buk missile system which destroyed the passenger plane was transported into Ukraine from the Russian 53rd Anti-Aircraft Missile Brigade’s base in Kursk and the launching system was then returned to Russia.

Alexander Borodai, who was head of the rebel government in eastern Ukraine at the time, said the probe was politically motivated.

"Western countries need to accuse both Russia and Donbass of being involved in this tragedy," he said.

While admitting that Ukrainian military planes were in the air the day before MH17 was shot down, he maintained that rebels did not deploy Buk missile systems.

After a painstaking investigation spanning years, an international team of investigators and prosecutors last year named four suspects: Russians Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinskiy and Oleg Pulatov as well as Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko.

More may follow as investigations continue.

Key questions remain over who authorized the missile's movement and who fired the Buk that brought down MH17.

For many Ukrainian lawmakers, there is no doubt that Russia was involved in the crash of the plane.

It remains to be seen whether the trial, expected to last months, will provide the answers.

++PLEASE NOTE: CONTAINS GRAPHIC IMAGES++

ARCHIVE: Hrabove, Ukraine - 17 July 2014

1. Wrecked casing of MH17 plane engine

2. Debris and bodies ++GRAPHIC++

3. Smoke billowing from debris and fire in distance

4. Various of engine

5. Official looking through wreckage

6. Various of smouldering debris and flames

ARCHIVE: Donetsk, Ukraine - 28 July 2014

7. Exterior of rebel-occupied government building

8. Close of facade where Ukrainian coat of arms has been removed

9. Igor Strelkov, then Defence Minister of self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, speaking to journalists

10. Close of map

11. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Strelkov, then Defence Minister of self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic:

"I cannot comment on anything, because I do not know how the plane (MH17) was shot down. I only know that it was shot and that's it. The only thing I can say is that my subordinates didn't shoot it down."

Moscow, Russia - 5 March 2020

12. Alexander Borodai, former rebel leader and prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic sitting at the table

13. Close of cup

14. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Alexander Borodai, Former rebel leader and prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic:

"It's obvious that this trial has been politically motivated from the very beginning. Western countries need to accuse both Russia and Donbass of being involved in this tragedy that happened to Boeing."

15. Cutaway of Borodai with reporter

16. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Alexander Borodai, Former rebel leader and prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic:

"The day before (MH17 had crashed), I was at a different location, far away from the place where Boeing crashed. As head of the Donetsk People's Republic, I was at the combat field near Marynovka and Stepanovka villages. A Ukrainian plane was bombing us from a decent altitude of around four thousand metres because he knew that we had a man-portable air-defence system. We hadn't even tried to take him down because we didn't have anything that could reach him."

ARCHIVE: Hrabove, Ukraine - 19 June 2019

17. Various of cows walking by memorial at crash site

18. Memorial at crash site

Kyiv, Ukraine - 5 March 2020

19. Various of parliamentary session

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, people's deputy (member of parliament) for European Solidarity party:

"For us it's also extremely important that the names of the politicians or the officials that have stood behind this crime, that they would be revealed and that I think would have a very serious impact on the whole geopolitical constellation and on the position of strong and continued pressure on the Russian Federation."

Kyiv, Ukraine - 6 March 2020

21. Various of Vitalii Vlasiuk, managing partner of ePravo Law Firm

22. Close of hands

23. SOUNDBITE (English) Vitalii Vlasiuk, managing partner, ePravo Law Firm:

"We still are in fight; we still are in war with Russia. And we must show all the world that Ukraine is eager to cooperate with other countries in order to make justice".

Moscow, Russia - 6 March 2020

24. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova walking to podium

25. Photographers

26. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Maria Zakharova, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson:

"The media campaign is taking an unprecedent scale. It shows how Russia and its citizens are presumed guilty - that is unacceptable. It has been launched in the last few days prior to the hearings in order to compensate for existing gaps in the evidence and to conceal the attempts to manipulate the facts so that it fits with a chosen theory."

Moscow, Russia - 4 March 2020

27. Political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin walking

28. Oreshkin sitting at the table

29. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Oreshkin, political analyst:

"Russia's logic is clear. They will deny everything and will not own up, as we say it in modern Russian language: 'They will be reluctant to cooperate with the investigation.'"

30. Mid of Oreshkin

31. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Oreshkin, political analyst:

"If the court delivers a guilty verdict - I'm sure it will - if it's against Russia, I'm sure it will not be in Russia's favour. Russia will say that it can't accept the verdict because it's against the constitutional articles that have been just amended."

ARCHIVE: Hrabove, Ukraine - 17 July 2014

32. Various of white ribbon

33. Various of debris

Ukraine's deputy foreign minister on Monday accused Russia of financing terrorism by shipping arms, ammunition and funds to separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine and of discriminating against non-Russians in the annexed Crimean Peninsula.

The charges came as a case between Kiev and Moscow opened at the U.N.'s highest judicial organ.

The International Court of Justice case, which also seeks reparations for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, opens a new legal front in the bitter, drawn-out conflict between Russia and its neighbour Ukraine.

The Amsterdam-to-Kuala Lumpur Flight MH17 was shot down on July 17, 2014, by a Buk surface-to-air missile over conflict-torn eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board.

International investigators have concluded that the Buk missile that shot down MH17 was fired from Russia-backed rebel-controlled territory in eastern Ukraine by a mobile launcher trucked in from Russia and hastily returned there, a finding that Moscow rejects.

The main case, in which Ukraine is asking the court to rule that Russia is breaching treaties on terrorist financing and racial discrimination, is likely to take months or years to resolve.

But judges will likely take just weeks to rule on whether to grant the provisional measures sought by Kiev at the hearing Monday.

They include an order to halt financing to rebels in eastern Ukraine and to stop discriminating against non-Russians in Crimea.

Russia will present its legal arguments on Tuesday.

Kiev - 6 March 2017

1. Exterior of Ukraine Foreign Ministry

2. Flags outside ministry

3. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Mariana Betsa, Spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine:

"On 16 January (2017), we also demanded the court to hold these hearings to determine the so-called provisional measures for Russia in order to prevent a deterioration (of the situation in eastern Ukraine and in Crimea), because the trial (which opened at the U.N.'s highest judicial organ on Monday) will continue for a few years on merit. Meanwhile, we need to do something to stop the suffering. People's lives have the highest value. That's why our main goal was to ask the court to avoid taking any actions which could make the situation worse - violations of conventions, discrimination of residents, killings, tortures and acts of terrorism."

FILE: Hrabove, Donetsk region - 19 July 2014

4. Various of MH17 plane crash site

FILE: Hrabove, Donetsk region - 21 July 2014

5. Crane lifting pieces of plane wreckage at MH17 plane crash site

6. Emergency workers standing next to wreckage at MH17 plane crash site

7. Large piece of wreckage being overturned at MH17 plane crash site

FILE: Mariupol, Donetsk region - 24 January 2015

8. Various shots showing the aftermath of shelling in residential area of Mariupol

Kiev - 6 March 2017

9. Wide of leader of Crimean Tatars Mustafa Dzhemilev in his Kiev apartment

10. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Mustafa Dzhemilev, Crimean Tatars leader:

"Some of the most awful crimes occupiers do in occupied Crimea are kidnappings and killings of people. Such crimes hadn't been committed even during Stalin's times. The 'procedure' of killing people existed then (referring to legal procedures that justified killings back then) and now without any (legal) procedure, each person can be disappeared at any moment. Today we know that about 17 persons, mainly young people, were kidnapped. We found a few bodies and the rest are missing."

11. Cutaway of Crimean Tatars flag

12. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Mustafa Dzhemilev, Crimean Tatars leader:

"I think the tendency to repress people will continue. Because the occupation regime will not be able to exist without repressions. Of course, if there was a democracy and people could express an opinion, they (occupiers) would not remain (in power) there (in Crimea). So they rely on repression only. They (Russia) started to have the opportunity to repress people after the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars was officially banned as an extremist organisation."

13. Various of Mustafa Dzhemilev watching the hearing of UN International Court of Justice

FILE: Crimea - March 2014

14. Various of military vehicles and armed men on the roads and streets of Crimea

Kiev - 6 March 2017

15. Ruslan Bortnik, Director of Ukrainian Institute for Analysis and Management of Policy

16. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Ruslan Bortnik, Director of Ukrainian Institute for Analysis and Management of Policy:

"I think that Ukraine doesn't expect the decision to be made or implemented very soon. The aims of this lawsuit at the international court is a bit different. The aim is to attract once again the international community's attention to the Ukrainian problem, to the problem of Crimea and Donbass, to the absence of any legal status of these territories, to this unsettled crisis."

Donetsk - 20 February 2017

17. Various of Donetsk streets

18. Various of passports issued by self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic

Germany is backing calls for the suspected perpetrators of the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 to be held to account.

Almost 300 people, including four German citizens, were killed when the plane was shot out of the sky over eastern Ukraine nearly four years ago.

A team of international investigators this week blamed a Russian military unit operating in Ukraine for the crime.

Spokesperson Martina Fietz said on Friday the German government accepted and supported the investigators' report.

She told reporters that "Russia should meet its responsibilities so that the tragedy can be fully cleared up and the perpetrators can be held to account."

Fietz added that no decision has been made on whether members of the German government will attend the soccer World Cup in Russia next month.

Berlin - 25 May 2018

1. German government press briefing

2. Camera

3. Journalists

4. SOUNDBITE (German) Martina Fietz, spokesperson for the German government:

"The joint investigation team has now determined that MH17 was shot down by a Buk-type anti-aircraft missile system, which without doubt belongs to the armed forces of the Russian Federation. The report names a Russian military unit, which was on Ukrainian territory at the time in question, as the specific responsible."

5. Journalists

6. SOUNDBITE (German) Martina Fietz, spokesperson for the German government:

"Russia should now meet its responsibilities so that the tragedy can be fully cleared up and the perpetrators can be held to account. We fully agree with the Dutch and other governments that the perpetrators of this crime must be identified and brought to justice."

7. Journalists

8. Press briefing

RESTRICTION SUMMARY: AP CLIENTS ONLY

SHOTLIST:

ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Kiev - 19 April 2017

1. Various of Foreign Ministry of Ukraine building exterior

2. Spokesperson Mariana Betsa speaking during the interview

3. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Mariana Betsa, Spokesperson of Foreign Ministry of Ukraine:

"This is indeed an important and victorious decision for us. There are a few reasons for this. The first one is that the UN International Court (International Court of Justice) clearly recognised the jurisdiction on both conventions. It could reject these conventions or the lawsuit of Ukraine. But it recognised the prima facie jurisdiction of two conventions. This is extremely important."

4. Cutaway of Foreign Ministry of Ukraine sign

5. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Mariana Betsa, Spokesperson of Foreign Ministry of Ukraine:

"We can see the constructive approach (by the court). Concerning Crimea it happens very rarely when the court makes a decision to order only one country to take some measures. Usually the court says that both sides must refrain from some actions, both sides have to take measures. This time the court ordered only Russia to take measures in the Crimean case. In my opinion this is very strong motion by the UN International Court. Concerning the east (the accusation of Russia sponsoring separatists in Donbas) we will continue to provide the evidence which we have. There is evidence not only from the Ukrainian side but from independent (experts) as well, including the MH17 International Investigative Group saying that the BUK (missile) was moved from the territory of the Russian Federation."

6. Various shots of Independence Square

7. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Volodymyr Fesenko, political analyst:

"The verdict can't help (to change the situation in Donbas and Crimea). Moreover there is no confidence in Ukraine that Russia will fulfil the part of the preliminary decision about Crimean Tatars' rights, particularly as it concerns the Mejlis (highest representative of the Tatars) activity renewal. From a political and a moral point of view it is extremely important for Ukraine to put pressure on Russia based on this part of the preliminary decision of the court. If Russia will fulfil the decision or won't it can be used by Ukraine for further trials."

8. Wide shot of Fesenko during the interview

ASSOCIATED PRESS - AP CLIENTS ONLY

Moscow, Russia - 19 April 2017

9. Russian State Duma exterior

10. Wide shot of lawmakers leaving meeting room

11. Ruslan Balbek, Russian lawmaker representing Crimea, giving an interview

12. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Ruslan Balbek, Russian lawmaker representing Crimea:

"Unfortunately, international organisations such as the UN court in the Hague has discredited itself in the eyes of Russians, in the eyes of Crimeans, because, they are trying to create ideological diversions, carry out informational attacks on Russia by using this national factor. It is clear that the Crimean Tatar factor here is being used as an instrument of pressure on Russia."

13. Various of Russian State Duma interior, lawmakers leaving meeting room

14. Close of screen reading (Russian) 'State Duma'

STORYLINE:

The International Court of Justice on Wednesday imposed measures to rein in discrimination by Moscow against ethnic Tatars and other minorities in Crimea.

The decision was hailed by Ukrainians, who called it an "important and victorious decision".

But in another element of Ukraine's legal case against Russia, the ICJ rejected Ukraine's request for measures aimed at blocking Russian support for rebels in eastern Ukraine, saying Kiev did not provide enough evidence to back up its claim that Moscow sponsored terrorism by funding and arming the rebels.

At hearings last month, Ukraine accused Russia of sponsoring terrorism by providing funds and weapons to rebels in Ukraine and of discriminating against Tatars and others in Crimea.

Russia rejects the allegations.

The court took Ukraine's side on allegations of discrimination in Crimea.

In a 13-3 decision by judges, the court said Russia "must refrain from maintaining or imposing limitations on the ability of the Crimean Tatar community to conserve its representative institutions."

Russia last year banned the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People, the self-governing legislative body of the Crimean Tatars, calling it an extremist organisation.

On Wednesday, the UN court's judges also unanimously ordered Russia "to ensure the availability of education in the Ukrainian language" in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed in March 2014, sparking international outrage.

A separatist insurgency erupted in eastern Ukraine the following month, backed by Russia.

"It is clear that the Crimean Tatar factor here is being used as an instrument of pressure on Russia," said Ruslan Balbek, a Russian parliament member from Crimea.

The case in The Hague, which also seeks reparations for the 2014 downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine, adds a legal front to the bitter, drawn-out conflict.

The UN court said it expects both Moscow and Kiev to work to implement the Minsk agreements that were designed to bring peace to conflict-ravaged eastern Ukraine.

Wednesday's ruling is a preliminary decision aimed at preserving the rights Ukraine claims Russia is breaching while the full case makes its way through the court, a process likely to take years.

In a legal victory for Ukraine, the 16-judge panel said that the court appears, at this early stage of proceedings, to have jurisdiction in both cases.

===========================================================

Clients are reminded:

(i) to check the terms of their licence agreements for use of content outside news programming and that further advice and assistance can be obtained from the AP Archive on: Tel +44 (0) 20 7482 7482 Email: info@aparchive.com

(ii) they should check with the applicable collecting society in their Territory regarding the clearance of any sound recording or performance included within the AP Television News service

(iii) they have editorial responsibility for the use of all and any content included within the AP Television News service and for libel, privacy, compliance and third party rights applicable to their Territory.

The Dutch government is taking Russia to the European Court of Human Rights for its alleged role in the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over eastern Ukraine six years ago, the foreign minister announced Friday.

The move is intended to support individual cases being brought to the European court by relatives of some of the 298 people who were killed when a plane flying from Amsterdam bound for Kuala Lumpur was shot out of the Sky.

A Buk surface-to-air missile fired from territory controlled by pro-Moscow Ukrainian rebels hit the plane on 17 July 2014.

By launching the case against Russia, the Dutch authorities can share evidence with the Strasbourg-based European court so it can be considered in individual relatives' cases.

Moscow has repeatedly denied involvement in the downing of the Boeing 777.

An international team of prosecutors investigating the case has, however, charged three Russians and a Ukrainian with involvement in bringing down the plane and the murder of all on board.

The men are on trial in a Dutch court, although none have been extradited to the Netherlands to face justice.

The Hague, Netherlands - 10 July 2020

1. Wide of Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok

2. Close shot of Blok

3. Mid of camera crew

4. SOUNDBITE(English) Stef Blok, Dutch Foreign Minister:

"We have evidence that they were involved. A lot of this evidence has already been published during the criminal proceedings that are at the same time, there taking place here in The Netherlands. A number of relatives of the deceased already started the procedure at the European Court of Human Rights and we can help those relatives by providing the court in Strasbourg with the evidence that we have."

5. Cutaway

6. SOUNDBITE(English) Stef Blok, Dutch Foreign Minister:

"From the onset, we have made clear that the downing of an airplane, civilian airplane, and 298 innocent casualties is such a severe breach of international law that we will pursue any venue to find the truth and bring justice to the relatives. That's why we decided together with Australia to start a procedure under international law, to hold the Russian Federation accountable. Our independent public prosecutor has started a criminal procedure under Dutch law, but there is also his third legal way of the European Court of Human Rights and as this venue is open and we can help the relatives, we think it is up to us to use this extra way to find the truth"

7. Cutaway

8. SOUNDBITE(English) Stef Blok, Dutch Foreign Minister:

"We have regular contact with the relatives so we let them know in advance that we will take this step. Also, I saw their public reaction today, they are happy that we also support their quest for truth and justice by

taking the steps we announced today."

9. Wide of Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok during interview

Russia is rejecting the claim by the Netherlands and Australia that it is legally responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 over war-ravaged eastern Ukraine nearly four years ago, killing all 298 people on board.

The accusations came a day after international investigators announced that the missile system that brought down the plane was whisked into Ukraine from a Russian military unit.

Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok said the government is now taking the next step by formally holding Russia accountable.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, rejected the accusations.

He said Friday that Russia has been barred from the investigation and thus can't trust its results.

He also charged that Ukraine contributed to the tragedy by failing to ban civilian air traffic over the war zone.

FILE: Moscow, Russia - 6 April 2017

1. STILL of Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov ++OVERLAYS AUDIO IN SHOT 2++

Moscow, Russia - 25 May 2018

2. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin:

"You know probably that this topic was discussed yesterday and I want to remind you of the words of the (Russian) President about the investigation that was held in the Netherlands, by this group of investigators. It didn't include the Russian side. However, the Ukrainian side was present. Of course without having an opportunity to be a full member of this investigative group, Russia doesn't know if it can trust the results of this work. This is the first thing."

++BLACK FRAMES++

FILE: Moscow, Russia - 6 April 2017

3. STILL of Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov ++OVERLAYS AUDIO IN SHOT 5++

Moscow, Russia - 25 May 2018

4. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin:

"Secondly, we'd like to remind that it was Ukraine, where military actions took place at that time, who didn't take appropriate steps to close its air space (to civilian air traffic). So these are the two most important elements President Putin mentioned yesterday. (Q: So in terms of the essence of the accusation you can simply repeat that Russia categorically rejects it?) Absolutely."

++BLACK FRAMES++

FILE: Moscow, Russia - 6 April 2017

5. STILL of Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov ++OVERLAYS AUDIO IN SHOT 8++

Moscow, Russia - 25 May 2018

6. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin:

"On the whole, the president is worried and regrets this cancellation (of the US-North Korea summit). The president together with our European partners is determined to work actively in order to minimise the negative consequences of the US decision, to provide the feasibility and further development of the JCPOA."

Russian journalist Kirill Vyshinsky, who was part of a major prisoner exchange with Ukraine, said on Monday that the weekend swap marked a "tectonic shift" in Russia's relations with Kyiv.

Vyshinsky, who is head of the Russian state news agency RIA-Novosti's Ukraine branch, had been jailed since 2018 on treason charges.

He arrived at a briefing on Monday alongside Dmitry Kiselyov, head of the Rossiya Segodnya media group that includes the RIA-Novosti agency.

Vyshinsky was greeted by fellow journalists and was presented with a T-shirt bearing the slogan: "A journalist shouldn't be in prison".

It's a tectonic shift (talking about the prisoner swap) in our relations (with Ukraine). At least, I would really like it to be the case," he said at the news briefing.

Russia and Ukraine each sent 35 freed prisoners as part of the swap, in a move that could be a significant step toward easing Russia-Ukraine relations and raise chances for resolving the fighting in Ukraine's east.

The prisoners included some of the highest-profile figures in the long conflict between Kyiv and Moscow, including Oleg Sentsov, a Ukrainian film director whose imprisonment on a conviction of preparing terrorist attacks was strongly denounced abroad and 24 Ukrainian sailors seized last year by the Russian navy.

Among those released by Ukraine was Volodymyr Tsemakh, who commanded a separatist rebel air defense unit in the area where a Malaysian airliner was shot down in 2014, killing all 298 people aboard.

Dutch investigators probing the aircraft's downing have wanted to question Tsemakh and dozens of Ukrainian lawmakers last week urged Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy against trading him.

Moscow – 9 September 2019

1. Various of journalist Kirill Vyshinsky, Russian prisoner who was released as part of prisoner swap with Ukraine on Saturday, walking with Dmitry Kiselyov, head of the Rossiya Segodnya media group and greeting colleagues

2. Woman holding poster with picture of Vyshinsky reading (Russian) "Welcome, Kirill!"

3. Wide of group of journalists

4. Kiselyov presenting Vyshinsky with a T-shirt, reading (Russian) "A journalist shouldn't be in prison."

5. Close of poster with picture of Vyshinsky reading (Russian) "Welcome, Kirill!"

6. Wide of news conference

7. Vyshinsky and Kiselyov sitting at table

8. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Kirill Vyshinsky, Russian journalist:

"It's a tectonic shift (talking about the prisoner swap) in our relations (with Ukraine). At least, I would really like it to be the case. Because, let's be clear, (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelenskiy won thanks to the enormous expectations of the people for peace and reconciliation inside the country, so that they would actually stop shooting. And of course, everyone is waiting for this."

9. Cutaways of reporter asking question

10. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Kirill Vyshinsky, Russian journalist:

"When I saw the indictments against me by SBU (Ukrainian Security Service), I realised that there wouldn't be any kind of real trial based on these indictments. They had another aim: I had to be kept in prison in order to be exchanged later. Moreover, they planned not only to exchange me, but to use me to exert pressure."

11. Cutaway of news conference

12. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Kirill Vyshinsky, Russian journalist:

"I don't think that PR (talking about Zelenskiy greeting Ukrainian prisoners at the airport in Kyiv) has anything to do with humanism. From my point of view, the exchange of the people who were by my side (in the airplane) was an act of humanism that was being fought for. And the men of conscription age walking down the ramp were...well, the men of conscription age understand the responsibility they bear, inclining the military (responsibilities), when they have carried out some acts. But I don't know what crimes the women who arrived with me committed."

13. Vyshinsky getting up and hugging colleague as news conference comes to end