SBU Chief Describes Investigation Into Plane Crash In Iran As Ukraine's Priority

KIEV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2020) The investigation into the unintentional downing of a Ukrainian passenger jetliner in Iran and prosecution of all those responsible is a matter of priority for the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), its head, Ivan Bakanov, said on Sunday.

"The terrible tragedy in Iran claimed lives of 11 of our compatriots. The society demands answers about the true causes [of the crash] and bringing all those responsible to justice. To investigate this catastrophe and establish the causality behind its events is a priority for the SBU," Bakanov was quoted as saying.

The statement further cited him as saying that all Ukrainian citizens must be able to feel secure in any part of the world regardless of circumstances.

"It is a matter if collective security, security of the state and of each of us.

All countries must work together to minimize even the theoretical possibility of such terrible tragedies happening in the future," Bakanov said.

Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashed near Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport minutes after takeoff on January 8. All 176 people on board were killed, among them citizens of Ukraine, Afghanistan, Canada, Germany, Iran, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Three days later, the Iranian military admitted to unintentionally shooting down the jetliner, having confused it with a hostile cruise missile.

The SBU launched a criminal investigation into breach of air transportation safety provisions, deliberate murder and deliberate destruction or damage of property. Iran has already confirmed that the downed plane's flight data recorders would be sent to Ukraine for decoding.