Photo by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash
On 9 July the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruled that Russia is fully responsible for the downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 over eastern Ukraine in July 2014, which resulted in the deaths of all 298 onboard, most of them Dutch citizens. The ruling was part of a broader case involving extensive human rights violations carried out by Russia before and after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
This judgment consolidates four interstate complaints filed by Ukraine and the Netherlands, including those concerning Russia’s military actions in Donbas, the illegal transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia, and abuses during the ongoing invasion. The court confirmed that it has jurisdiction over all these complaints, encompassing events until Russia’s withdrawal from the Council of Europe in September 2022.
In a unanimous decision, the court found that flight MH17 was brought down by a Russian Buk missile system and that Russia is directly responsible, violating Articles 2 and 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights. The ruling also details widespread atrocities in occupied Ukrainian territories: arbitrary killings, torture, mass detentions, suppression of Ukrainian identity, and forced deportations, including of children.
The verdict emphasises Russia’s hostile rhetoric towards Ukraine and other European nations, describing it as a threat to peace across the continent. It calls for Russia to immediately release unlawfully detained individuals and to cooperate in returning abducted children through an independent international mechanism.
Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans described the ruling as an important step toward justice, especially for the families of MH17 victims. Russia, however, dismissed the ruling as void and announced it would not comply.
Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked.
This long-overdue judgment comes 11 years after Russia’s hybrid war in eastern Ukraine began. Europe’s delayed and fragmented response to Russia’s early aggression arguably facilitated the 2022 full-scale invasion. The ruling is a legal and moral reckoning, not only for Russia but also for those in Europe who once repeated Kremlin narratives about a civil war in Ukraine or discrimination against Russian speakers. In retrospect, such voices now seem either compromised or dangerously naïve.
Although Russia refuses to recognise the court’s authority, the ECHR’s decision signifies a turning point. It establishes essential groundwork for future accountability, particularly within the scope of the newly created Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine. Justice may be delayed, but it has commenced.
