俄罗斯必须为MH17的悲剧负责

Russia Must be Called to Account for the MH-17 Tragedy

On July 17, 2014, a Malaysia Airlines passenger airplane, designated as Flight MH-17, left Amsterdam for Kuala Lumpur with 298 passengers and crew. Three hours into its flight, the airplane was shot out of the sky over eastern Ukraine. All 298 people on board died. Most of the victims were Dutch, Malaysians, and Australians.

As a direct result of Russia's aggression¹ in Ukraine, by mid-July 2014, Ukrainian security forces and Russia-led forces had been fighting in south-eastern Ukraine for over three months. It is worth noting that on July 14th, just three days before MH-17 was destroyed, two Ukrainian military aircraft were shot down by the Russia-led forces using Russian BUK surface-to-air missiles.

The International Civil Aviation Organization warned governments not to overfly south-eastern Ukraine, but this warning did not include the region where MH-17 crashed.

On May 24th, 2018, a Dutch-led international team of investigators² announced that Malaysia Airlines flight MH-17 had been shot out of the sky by pro-Russian “separatists” using a BUK missile that had been transported into eastern Ukraine from a Russian military unit based in western Russia. The BUK missile was fired from Russia-controlled territory in eastern Ukraine.

Because Russia provided the weapon, the Netherlands and Australia are seeking to hold Russia accountable for the tragedy. Despite these facts, Russia continues to deny its involvement.

“We strongly support the decisions by the Netherlands and Australia to call Russia to account for its role in the July 2014 downing of Malaysia Flight Number 17 over eastern Ukraine and the horrific deaths of 298 civilians³. It is time for Russia to acknowledge its role in the shooting down of MH-17 and to cease its callous⁴ disinformation campaign,” said State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert in a written statement.

“As the findings of the Joint⁵ Investigative Team made clear, the BUK missile launcher used to bring down the passenger aircraft is owned by the Russian Federation⁶ and was assigned to the Russian 53rd anti-aircraft brigade near Kursk. It was brought into sovereign Ukrainian territory from Russia, was fired from territory controlled by Russia and Russia-led forces in eastern Ukraine, and was then returned to Russian territory. We urge Russia to adhere to UNSCR 2166 and respond to Australia's and the Netherlands' legitimate⁷ requests.”

1 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

2 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 callous   

adj.无情的，冷淡的，硬结的，起老茧的

参考例句：

• He is callous about the safety of his workers.他对他工人的安全毫不关心。
• She was selfish,arrogant and often callous.她自私傲慢，而且往往冷酷无情。

5 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

6 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

7 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。