Canadian Foreign Minister: The world is waiting for Iran's appropriate response and will not rest
Canada's foreign minister vowed in London today that Iran would be "pressured" to answer the "exact reason" for the downing of the Ukrainian plane. "The world is waiting for answers and will not rest until we get the right answers," he said.
The foreign ministers of the five countries whose citizens were killed when two Iranian Revolutionary Guards missiles hit a Ukrainian airliner met today, January 16, with the aim of pressuring Tehran to conduct a "full and transparent" investigation into the tragedy.
At this joint meeting, Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne called for a transparent investigation based on international aviation laws, and said that a draft of five articles was developed today with the aim of free access to documents and evidence of the incident in Iran, as well as identifying the victims.
Noting that the Islamic Republic of Iran accepted full responsibility for the incident, he emphasized that "only a transparent and complete investigation" can determine the root causes and reasons for this incident.
According to AFP, in another part of his speech, he said: "Now the families of the dead want answers, the international community is also waiting for answers, and we will not rest until we receive these answers."
He added that by pressuring Tehran, he will seek the "exact cause" of the incident, identify those responsible, and bring justice to the families of the victims.
Five-country statement on accountability and compensation
The Associated Press also reported from London that the foreign ministers of Canada, Britain, Sweden, Ukraine, and the acting foreign minister of Afghanistan, as representatives of their governments, issued a statement today calling on Tehran to accept "full responsibility" for the downing of the Ukrainian plane and pay compensation to the families of the victims.
Before their joint meeting, they lit candles in London's Trafalgar Square in memory of their citizens who were passengers on the flight, as well as the crew of the Ukrainian plane that died.
“Comprehensive, transparent and independent international investigations”
Earlier, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called for a “comprehensive, transparent and independent international investigation” into the disaster. The Canadian government also issued a statement calling for an “official investigation” into the matter.
Canadian investigators are ready.
Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau announced yesterday that two Canadian investigators were being sent to Iran as part of an international team, saying the level of cooperation had been good.
He also called for Canada's official participation in the investigation process.
Mr. Garneau, noting that the black box of this flight is in Iran's possession, announced that two other Canadian agents specialising in the investigation of this case are ready to examine the information from this box at any time and anywhere.
A Ukrainian Airlines Boeing 737 crashed on January 8, minutes after taking off from Imam Khomeini International Airport, after being shot down by two ballistic missiles fired by the Revolutionary Guards. All 176 people on board were killed.
Iranian officials initially claimed that a technical fault caused the Ukrainian plane to crash over Tehran, but after evidence and documents were confirmed to refute Iran's claim, Revolutionary Guard officials said after a three-day delay that the plane was "accidentally and unintentionally" targeted by an IRGC air defense missile. However, a new video released shows that the plane was shot down by two missiles.
This video shows that the IRGC's air defenses fired two missiles at the aforementioned plane 30 seconds apart, contrary to statements by Islamic Republic officials.
The authenticity of this video, which was posted on social media, has been confirmed by the New York Times.
Source: DW
