Russia responds with cynicism to MH17 court decision
Photo: MH17 crash site (Getty Images)
Russia has commented on the European Court of Human Rights’ ruling, which found Moscow responsible for the downing of flight MH17 — the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 shot down over Donbas in 2014. As expected, the Kremlin announced it would not recognize the court’s decision, according to Russian state media.
Peskov confirmed that Russia does not intend to comply with any ECHR rulings, including the July 9 decision regarding the plane crash.
"We’re not going to comply. We consider them null and void. That’s all there is to say," he stated in response to journalists’ questions.
MH17 Boeing 777 crash
In July 2014, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 passenger jet flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur (flight MH17) was shot down over the temporarily occupied part of the Donetsk region, near the town of Shakhtarsk. All 298 people on board were killed.
Russia actively tried to shift the blame for the crime onto Ukraine. However, international investigators concluded that the aircraft was downed by a Russian-made Buk surface-to-air missile system. The launcher that fired the missile belonged to the 53rd Air Defense Brigade of the Russian army and was quickly removed back to Russia once it became clear the wrong aircraft had been shot down over Shakhtarsk.
In 2022, a court in the Netherlands found several individuals guilty in the downing of the plane. At the time of the tragedy, they were members of the pro-Russian organization DNR (Donetsk People’s Republic). Among them was Russian militant Igor Strelkov-Girkin.
In June 2024, the European Court of Human Rights held hearings in a joint case brought by Ukraine and the Netherlands against Russia. The Russian government did not attend the hearings, but both plaintiff states were present.
On July 9, 2025, the ECHR ruled that Russia was responsible for numerous human rights violations during the war, including the downing of MH17 over Donbas. The court officially confirmed Russia’s role in the destruction of the passenger plane and the deaths of hundreds of people. Ukrainian officials called the ruling historic.
