Foreign Minister Anifah Aman, on behalf of the Malaysian government, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on political support to prosecute the perpetrators of the downing of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 on July 14, 2014.

The signing of the MoU took place at the official residence of the Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the United Nations in New York, yesterday.

Wisma Putra in a statement today said that the MoU was signed on the margins of the ongoing 72nd United Nations General Assembly.

The foreign ministers of Ukraine, Australia, Belgium and the Netherlands also signed the MoU on behalf of their respective governments.

With the signing of the MoU, the five countries, which established the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) to coordinate the criminal investigation on the downing of MH17, reaffirmed their common resolve to seek justice and accountability by ensuring that the perpetrators are held to account as demanded by the UN Security Council Resolution 2166.

“Agreeing to prosecute the perpetrators of the downing of flight MH17 in the Netherlands, the JIT countries confirmed that they will assist one another should any of them face any kind of external pressure to undermine the prosecution or the cooperation among them,” Wisma Putra said.

Wisma Putra said Malaysia was unwavering in its commitment to prosecute the perpetrators of the MH17's downing and secure justice for all the victims, their families and loved ones.

“Malaysia is pleased with the Dutch-led JIT investigations so far and is confident that national prosecution under the Dutch law is the most viable option to bring the perpetrators to justice,” it said.

Wisma Putra said Malaysia also hoped that this first step towards prosecuting the perpetrators would bring some measure of comfort and hope to the families and next-of-kin of those lost in the tragedy.

The Boeing B777, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was shot down over Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, on July 14, 2014, killing all 298 passengers and crew members on board.

- Bernama