Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad questioned the objectivity of the investigations into the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 and added that Russia is being made a scapegoat for that tragedy in 2014.
The team set up to probe the crash said on Wednesday three Russians and one Ukrainian will face murder charges for the deaths of 298 people on board the flight that was shot down over eastern Ukraine.
The South China Morning Post quoted Mahathir as saying that from the very beginning it was a political issue on how to accuse Russia of the wrongdoing.
While speaking to porters at a government event, the Malaysian Prime Minister said that it is very difficult for Malaysia to accept that, and there is no proof of guilt but only hearsay.
The Dutch-led Joint Investigation Team (JIT) presented the new evidence and announce charges for the first time after a meeting with relatives of the victims. Further details are expected to be announced later during the day.
The four have been identified as Russians Igor Girkin, Sergey Dubinskiy and Oleg Pulatov, and Ukrainian Leonid Kharchenko and all worked for the military intelligence agency (GRU) of the separatist Donetsk People’s Republic at the time of the attack, investigators said.
They will be subject to international arrest warrants and placed on international wanted lists.
