An investigation into the deadly Boeing 737 crash that claimed the lives of 176 people is in full swing amid conflicting reports on what caused the tragedy.
Iran insists that the plane crash occurred due to a technical error. Several other nations, including the US, UK, and Canada (who lost nationals in the tragedy) are not ruling out the possibility of a missile attack.
Ukraine, whose citizens were also among the victims, says the reports that the plane was downed remain unconfirmed.
The ministry stated that Kiev would demand punishment of those responsible for the Boeing crash in Iran and would also demand compensation if the plane was shot down.
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The United States believes that the Ukrainian passenger airplane that crashed outside of Tehran on Wednesday morning was likely shot down by an Iranian missile, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a press briefing.
"We do believe that it's likely that that plane was shot down by an Iranian missile", Pompeo said on Friday. "We're going to let the investigation play out before we make a final determination, it's important that we get to the bottom of it."
TORONTO (Sputnik) - Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland in a statement on Friday said she met communities in Alberta province affected by the crash of a Ukrainian jet in Iran.
"Yesterday I met with University of Alberta faculty and students who have been so deeply affected by the loss of their colleagues and friends. I also later met with family, friends, and members of the Iranian-Canadian community in Edmonton who are grappling with this tragic loss", Freeland said.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Russian Cabinet is prepared to take urgent measures to ensure the safety of Russian citizens in the Middle East, including their evacuation, if the situation in the region continues to escalate, government spokesman Oleg Osipov said on Friday.
"In the event of the further aggravation of the situation, the Russian government is ready to take steps that will allow, if necessary, the implementation of all urgent material, technical and financial measures to ensure the safety of Russian citizens, including their evacuation", Osipov said.
TOKYO (Sputnik) - It is unacceptable to jump to conclusions about what caused the Ukrainian passenger plane to crash this week in Iran before experts finish their assessment, a Russian deputy foreign minister said Friday.
"I am deeply convinced that it is unacceptable to try to score political points over this horrible human tragedy. It should be left to experts to analyse the situation and make conclusions. Playing games is at the very least indecent", Sergei Ryabkov told reporters in Tokyo.
Rumours that the Ukrainian Boeing 737 with 176 people aboard was downed by an Iranian missile near Tehran on Wednesday have been echoed by several Western leaders, with the Canadian prime minister claiming he had intelligence that pointed to a strike by a surface-to-air missile.
Iran initially refused to hand black boxes from the crashed plane over to the US authorities and aircraft maker Boeing or let them be part of the investigation, but later reversed its stance. Iran's civilian aviation chief said that a missile strike at the jetliner was impossible.
According to Heiko Maas, the cause of the incident should not be "hidden under the table".
The Swedish Transport Agency said in a statement that the uncertainty surrounding the incident and concerns over the security of civil aviation are the reasons for the halt of flights.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Iranian Ambassador to the United Kingdom Hamid Baeidinejad told the Sky News broadcaster that claims of Iran clearing the site of the Ukrainian Boeing crash with bulldozers were "absolutely absurd."
The diplomat was referring to a video found by media and showing bulldozers allegedly clearing debris from the site of the Wednesday crash of the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing.
The ambassador questioned the validity of another video that was claimed to show a missile hitting the passenger aircraft.
"Plane accidents are a very technical issue. I cannot judge, you cannot judge, reporters on the ground cannot judge. Nobody can judge. A foreign minister or a prime minister cannot judge on this issue", the ambassador was quoted as saying.
The diplomat said that Iran was "confident from our side that there has been no missile launched in that area at that time."
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) will need to obtain a licence from the Treasury Department to participate in the investigation of the Iran Boeing 737 crash due to the country's sanctions against Tehran, NTSB's chief of media relations, Christopher O’Neil, revealed, adding that the process for getting such a license may take over a year.
"Correct, [we need a license to participate in the probe] because of the embargo", O’Neil said, adding that obtaining the license would be "one of several processes that need to be coordinated within the US government."
According to him, existing embargoes complicate the agency's participation in the investigation. He added that this concerned not only Iran but also other similar cases.
The Treasury Department also confirmed that the law required that licences be issued for such cases.
"Treasury has the ability to authorise activity that would otherwise be prohibited through the issuance of both General and Specific OFAC [Office of Foreign Assets Control] Licences, based on the individual facts and circumstances of the request. Treasury does not comment on individual licencing matters, specific applications, or licences issued," the statement said.
Spoke with Ukrainian President @ZelenskyyUa to express my deepest condolences for the lives lost in the tragic crash of Ukrainian International Airlines flight 752. We stand with #Ukraine and are ready to offer our support and assistance in the ongoing investigation.
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) January 10, 2020
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Germany has no data of its own about what could have caused the Ukraine-bound passenger plane to crash in Iran earlier this week but is ready to provide experts to support the investigation, the spokesman for the German government, Steffen Seibert, said on Friday.
"The government took note of the recent events, first of all, of the statements of the US president and Canadian prime minister. We have no data on our own about the possible causes of the crash, but the inquiries and references about that the plane could have been downed by a missile should be taken seriously", Seibert said at a press briefing.
According to the spokesman, Berlin expects Tehran to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the incident in close cooperation with all countries concerned. He also said that the investigation must account for all possible causes rather than be limited to the version of the aircraft's technical failure.
He added that Germany was prepared to send experts to aid the investigation if necessary.
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The process of decoding the flight recorders of the Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) plane that crashed in Iran may take 1-2 months, the Tasnim news agency reported citing the Civil Aviation Organisation of Iran (CAOI).
"The crash of the Ukrainian aircraft was a major and fatal plane crash. It will take 1-2 years to investigate it, and it will take 1-2 months to decipher the black box", CAOI chief Ali Abedzadeh said.
KIEV (Sputnik) - Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko announced on Friday that he, along with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, met with US representatives and received important information on the Boeing 737 plane crash in Iran.
"Together with President Zelensky, we met with US representatives, including Kristina Kvien, the deputy chief of the US Embassy in Ukraine. We received important information [on the plane crash] that will be processed by our specialists", Prystaiko wrote on Twitter.
Разом з Президентом Володимиром Зеленським зустрілися з представниками США, зокрема із керівницею Посольства в Україні Крістіною Квін. Отримали важливі дані, які будуть опрацьовані нашими фахівцями. Очікуємо розмови @ZelenskyyUa з Держсекретарем США @SecPompeo о 15:00.
— Vadym Prystaiko (@VPrystaiko) January 10, 2020
MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Iran has not asked the Interstate Aviation Committee (IAC) to provide any help with the investigation into Ukraine's Boeing crash, but the committee is ready to contribute to the probe upon relevant request, the IAC said on Friday.
"Taking into consideration the IAC's international recognition as an independent investigative body, the IAC's huge experience in investigation of over 800 flight accidents, and the fact that it has the necessary equipment and specialists who have taken part in probes into [accidents] involving Boeing 737 — the IAC is ready to provide any assistance in the technical investigation if it receives a request from the Iranian side", the IAC said.
TEHRAN (Sputnik) – Iran will begin analysis of Ukrainian Boeing 737’s black box in a laboratory of Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran on Friday, the head of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organisation Accident Department, Hassan Razai, said at a press conference.
"Today, we will start analysing the black box in a laboratory of Mehrabad International Airport. If Iran cannot extract information from it, we will ask Russia, France, Canada or Ukraine to analyse the black box to prevent data damage", Razai said.
STOCKHOLM (Sputnik) - Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Loefven said on Friday that his country would cooperate with Ukraine in investigating the fatal crash of a Kiev-bound Boeing passenger plane in Iran amid reports that it might have been hit by an errant missile belonging to the Iranian forces.
"Yesterday, I spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. We will cooperate closely with Ukraine in the investigation", Loefven was quoted as saying by Sweden's Sveriges Radio.
Loefven told the broadcaster that the investigation must be expanded to an international scale. He also said that he discussed the matter over the phone with his Canadian counterpart, Justin Trudeau, and both agreed that the investigation must be rigorous, quick and transparent.
