MH17 shoot down 'ordered by Putin' as expert claims he told Xi: 'Leave it to me'
The Russian and Chinese leaders saw the attack as "revenge" against the US, a book has claimed.
On Thursday, a Dutch court will give its long-awaited verdict on the case of Malaysia Airlines flight 17, shot down over eastern Ukraine in July 2014, killing all 298 people on board.
The flight – headed to Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport – flew over Ukraine not long after Russian President
Vladimir Putin sent his forces in to annex Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk.
Fighting between the two countries was taking place on the ground and in the air, leading to Ukraine closing the airspace below 32,000 feet.
Flying at 33,000 feet, the Boeing 777 lost contact at 1:20pm GMT. The Dutch Safety Board, US and German intelligence concluded that the plane was shot down by pro-Russian separatists. The Russian government has always denied any involvement.
Now, after eight long years, the trial in Amsterdam will offer a verdict on whether three Russians and one Ukrainian are responsible for mass murder, bringing some closure to the bereaved families of those killed in the incident.
Those on trial – who include Igor Girkin, who prosecutors day is a former FSB colonel – all refused to appear in court and were tried in absentia. Whatever the outcome on Thursday, it is thought unlikely that any of the accused will serve jail time, but the investigation has provided some incontestible evidence for the history books.
But already, a number of experts have concluded that Russia was ultimately responsible for the MH17 attack. This includes Florence De Changy, who wrote the book, The Disappearing Act: The Impossible Case of
MH370.
In fact, she suggests in the book that Putin himself could have been responsible, shooting down the plane to achieve two things – to get "revenge" on the US and improve his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
