ISTANBUL

Australia on Wednesday vowed to hold Russia accountable for the alleged downing of the MH17 flight.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said: “The findings of ... court unequivocally and conclusively establish Russia’s responsibility for the downing of MH17."

In 2022, a court in the Netherlands awarded life sentences to three people, including Russian citizens Sergey Dubinskiy and Igor Girkin, as well as Ukrainian citizen Leonid Kharchenko, who were found guilty of causing the crash while another Russian, Oleg Pulatov, was acquitted on all charges.

“We will not be deterred in our commitment to hold Russia to account,” Wong said, addressing families of the victims at the Australian Parliament.

The MH17 flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down above eastern Ukraine on July 17, 2014. All 298 on board were killed, including 196 Dutch citizens.

However, Moscow had rejected the verdict and called it a "scandalous" decision announced under unprecedented pressure by a Dutch court and denied any involvement in the downing of the jet.