Skip to content
Edit post

Dutch PM urges justice for MH17 victims, pushes to continue dialogue with Russia

by Asami Terajima February 3, 2022 1:01 AM 2 min read
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky during a joint press conference in Kyiv on Feb. 2. (The Presidential Office of Ukraine)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.

Become a member Support us just once

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte warned of “serious consequences” if Moscow chooses to further invade Ukraine, during his visit to Kyiv on Feb. 2.

A renewed invasion of Ukraine will trigger a “robust” package of Western sanctions, Rutte said during a joint press conference following his talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

However, Rutte emphasized that it's crucial to continue dialogue with Russia to defuse the tensions on the Ukrainian border and make every effort to “de-escalate the dangerous situation in which we find ourselves.”

Rutte's comments come amid the ongoing Russian military build-up. According to Ukrainian officials, Russia concentrated over 120,000 troops, a wide range of military equipment and aircraft along the Ukrainian border.

The new satellite imagery by Maxar, released on Feb. 2, showed ongoing steady Russian military deployment around Ukraine.

“The only route to a solution is through de-escalation, diplomacy and dialogue,” Rutte said.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte walks together with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Feb. 2. (The Presidential Office of Ukraine)

Rutte is the latest NATO leader to visit Kyiv in a show of solidarity as Russia’s military buildup continues to stir up Western fears that Moscow could be planning an all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Nonetheless, the Dutch prime minister focused on humanitarian issues as well.

Rutte announced that the Netherlands will donate $450,000 to help combat COVID-19 in eastern Ukraine and offered Dutch assistance to fend off cyberattacks. The Netherlands has also agreed to launch a joint program to build 48 hospitals and rehabilitation centers for Ukrainian armed forces and veterans.

Rutte said the Netherlands will support Ukraine “wherever we can.”

MH17

Despite being overshadowed by the ongoing Russian escalation, the meeting was planned in advance, with the key issue being the downing of the Malaysia Airlines passenger flight by Russian-led troops over eastern Ukraine in 2014.

A missile brought down plane MH17 en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur and killed all 298 people on board, most of whom were Dutch citizens.

The International Court of Justice in The Hague confirmed prior independent findings that Russia shot down the plane using the Buk ground-to-air missile transported from Russia to Russian-occupied eastern Donbas.

The court also heard witnesses who saw the missile launch from a location controlled by Russian-backed forces. The court charged four Kremlin-linked suspects with downing the plane.

Among them are three Russian citizens – Igor Girkin, a former colonel of Russia’s FSB security agency who was appointed the militants’ minister of defense in Donetsk, Sergei Dubinsky, who headed Russia’s military intelligence unit in Donetsk and Oleg Pulatov, a deputy of Dubinsky.

The fourth man charged is Leonid Kharchenko, a Ukrainian national who commanded a Russian-backed military unit in eastern Ukraine. The trial is ongoing.

Despite compelling evidence, Russia denies any involvement in the crash.

Rutte vowed to secure justice for the families of the victims. He said the Netherland’s priorities are to establish the truth of what happened and hold those responsible to account.

"It's not an easy process but giving up is not an option for both of us," Rutte said looking at Zelensky.

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

Ukraine Daily
News from Ukraine in your inbox
Ukraine news
Please, enter correct email address
5:30 AM

Ukrainian POWs faced conditional release from Hungary.

Two Ukrainian prisoners of war, part of a group of 11 handed over to Hungary by Russia in June 2023, said in an interview to Deutsche Welle, that Hungarian representatives imposed conditions preventing their return to Ukraine until the war's end.
3:16 AM

Estonian police arrest citizen who reported for Russian state media.

Estonian police have arrested Svetlana Burceva, an Estonian citizen, for allegedly violating international sanctions having served as a reporter for Russian state sponsored Balt News - an arm of the Kremlin-run Russia Today (RT) news outlet, Estonian publication Eesti Ekspress reported on March 27.
9:03 PM

Prague sanctions Medvedchuk over 'influence operations' in Czechia, EU.

Fiala said that Viktor Medvedchuk and another sanction individual, Ukrainian-Israeli pro-Kremlin propagandist Artem Marchevskyi, "oversaw several influence operations and networks from the Russian Federation" and sought to influence social discourse in Czechia through the Voice of Europe organization, which was also placed on the sanctions list.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.