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Who would judge the MH17 damages claims?
Summary
A look back at the questions of jurisdiction and espionage that surfaced in reports on the days around 1 September 2020.
What law would govern claims for the victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17? On 1 September 2020, that question was still open, a day after lawyers for victims' families announced their plans.
On 31 August 2020, the lawyers said they intended to seek unspecified damages from the four suspects charged by the Dutch Public Prosecution Service in connection with the downing of the plane. The claims had not yet been filed. A Dutch District Court was still to decide whether Dutch or Ukrainian law would apply.
The flight, from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down on 17 July 2014 by Russian-backed forces with a Buk surface-to-air missile over eastern Ukraine. All 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed. Wreckage fell near Hrabove in Donetsk Oblast, about 40 km from the border with Russia, in territory held by Russian separatist forces during the war in Donbas.
A separate Russia case in France
Another story involving Russia was also in the news. On 30 August 2020, French Minister of the Armed Forces Florence Parly disclosed that an army lieutenant-colonel stationed at a NATO base in Italy had been arrested and indicted on espionage charges. He was reported to have supplied sensitive documents to an officer of the GRU, Russian military intelligence.
The two reports were unconnected, but both showed how disputes over Russia's conduct were being pursued through legal channels at the start of September 2020.
