Washington has evidence that the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 plane which crashed in Ukraine's east on July 17 was shot down from an area controlled by Russian-backed separatists, U.S. President Barack Obama said.
“Now, here is what we know so far. Evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile that was launched from an area that is controlled by Russian-backed separatists inside of Ukraine,” Obama said in a statement on July 18.
The U.S. president believes it’s too early to be able to guess what the intentions of those who might have launched the surface-to-air missile might have had.
“In the coming hours and days, I’ll continue to be in close contact with leaders from around the world as we respond to this catastrophe,” Obama said.
“Our immediate focus will be on recovering those who were lost, investigating exactly what happened and putting forward the facts. And I want to point out there will likely be misinformation as well. I think it’s very important for folks to sift through what is factually based and what is simply speculation,” he said.
Obama stresses that it’s important to recognize that the plane crash underscores that “it is time for peace and security to be restored in Ukraine.”
U.S. Permanent Representative to UN Samantha Power said earlier that the Malaysian plane was likely downed by an SA-11 missile, operated from a separatist-held location in eastern Ukraine.
