Posted on 07/21/2014 8:20:29 AM PDT by tcrlaf
Russias Defence Ministry dismissed accusations on Monday that pro-Russia separatists in Ukraines east were at fault for shooting down a Malaysia Airlines jet last week, alleging instead that Ukrainian warplanes had been flying close to the plane.
The ministry also denied accusations that Russia had supplied the separatists with SA-11 Buk anti-aircraft missile systems which are known as Gadfly in NATO or any other weapons.
Russian air space control systems detected a Ukrainian Air Force plane, presumably an SU-25 (fighter jet), scrambling in the direction of the Malaysian Boeing, Lieutenant-General Igor Makushev of Russias Air Forces told a news briefing. The distance of the SU-25 plane from the Boeing was from 3 to 5 kilometres (2 to 3 miles).
The ministrys comments came as the Netherlands announced that prosecutors had opened an investigation into the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17, which claimed the lives of all 298 people on board, 193 of whom were Dutch citizens
(Excerpt) Read more at france24.com ...
RT's headline is somewhat different:
Ukrainian Su-25 fighter detected in close approach to MH17 before crash - Moscow http://rt.com/news/174412-malaysia-plane-russia-ukraine/
"The Russian military detected a Ukrainian SU-25 fighter jet gaining height towards the MH17 Boeing on the day of the catastrophe. Kiev must explain why the military jet was tracking the passenger airplane, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
Follow Malaysia Airlines MH17 plane crash in Ukraine LIVE UPDATES
A Ukraine Air Force military jet was detected gaining height, its distance from the Malaysian Boeing was 3 to 5km, said the head of the Main Operations Directorate of the HQ of Russias military forces, Lieutenant-General Andrey Kartopolov speaking at a media conference in Moscow on Monday.
[We] would like to get an explanation as to why the military jet was flying along a civil aviation corridor at almost the same time and at the same level as a passenger plane, he stated.
The SU-25 fighter jet can gain an altitude of 10km, according to its specification, he added. Its equipped with air-to-air R-60 missiles that can hit a target at a distance up to 12km, up to 5km for sure.
The presence of the Ukrainian military jet can be confirmed by video shots made by the Rostov monitoring center, Kartopolov stated.
At the moment of the MH17 crash an American satellite was flying over the area of eastern Ukraine, according to Russias Defense Ministry. It urged the US to publish the space photos and data captured by it."
RT is utter BS, that includes that lying psycho Max Keiser. All the Putin festishists on FR should wake up and smell the vodka. He is one more POS Russian dictator - no different from Stalin or Khruschev.
Uhh.....
The Article is from Agencie France Press.
I can’t help but note you don’t say the same thing when someone post articles directly from EuroMadanPR, Ukrainform, KievPost, or Timchuk’s Facebook page.
Now why is that, do you suppose?
If someone besides the Russians did it, why would they hamper the investigation?
No different than Stalin, or Kruschev or Obama. Let’s not forget everyone.
What exactly are the Russians doing to hamper the investigation?
The Russian Defense Ministry has released satellite photos of Ukrainian BUK mobile missile batteries on the outskirts of Luhansk, calls on the US to release its satellite photos of the same area.
Destroying evidence (the launcher) for starters.
Your constant defense of Putin and this massacre by his people is truly embarrassing.
“Destroying evidence (the launcher) for starters”
When did they destroy the launcher?
Probably because neither party trusts the other. Both sides think the other will “fix” the investigation.
Just guessing
They removed it, and if you think anybody will ever see it again, then you truly are naive. Same with the personnel who operated it.
The Russians are stalling, doing everything they can to delay or obstruct the investigation.
Stop with your pro-Russian crap, we’re all sick of it.
Might be this is the one we posted about early on, where an air traffic guy saw this on his screen?
You said Russia destroyed it. I asked when...
I want to know THE TRUTH about what happened.
ALL Media are ‘political foot-soldiers’.......have been so for a very long time now...but especially when events occur....News agencies become cannon fodder...and it spills over the airwaves.
Bottom line....there’s war in Ukraine.....so it’s to be expected all parties will twist or deny the truth, which generally lays somewhere in the middle and no one has hands without blood on them.
“Might be this is the one we posted about early on, where an air traffic guy saw this on his screen?”
I looked in to the “Spanish Controller” reports.
I think that was just Twitter BS...
This is Russia’s Defense Department, so it is the official position, it seems.
It would be easy to dispute if the Obama Administration releases our own Satellite and intercept info, as well as the ATC tapes.
Kiev-Post is under US control completely.
Yeah, right - coming from one of the leading Putin suck-ups on FR, that would be funny if it wasn't so pathetic.
CNN was just now talking about this.
Are they “Putin Suckups!”, too?
This is an AFP article. Are they “Putin Suckups”, too?
This plane accident has more political meaning to parties than the loss of life. Which is why the media is carrying the political messages they are...” He said she said”...is rampant!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.