The downing of the UIA plane: Iran refused to admit its responsibility and ignored the claims of the international group

Author:
Anna Kholodnova
Date:

Iran ignores the claims of members of the international Coordination Group regarding the downing of UIA passenger flight PS752 and refuses to recognize its full international legal responsibility.

This was announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine following discussions held this week.

The main topics were Iranʼs responsibility for its violation of international law and the need for full compensation.

"The Coordination Group regrets that Iran remains unwilling to support our substantive position and continues to ignore our claims. Based on the discussions that took place this week, the Group believes that our position and Iranʼs position are too far from each other to reconcile them through negotiations," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.

  • On January 8, 2020, UIA passenger flight PS752 was shot down by two anti-aircraft missiles after takeoff in the capital of Iran. All 176 people on board, including 57 Canadian citizens, died. Within days, Iran admitted that its forces accidentally shot down the plane. The intelligence services of the USA and the European Union reported as early as January 9 that the military was to blame for the tragedy. Ukrainian authorities declared Iranʼs responsibility on January 11.
  • On March 17, 2021, Iran released its final report on the plane crash. Ukraine called it cynical and manipulative. Already in January 2022, the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office named the alleged perpetrators of the crime.
  • In April 2023, an Iranian court sentenced ten military personnel for shooting down the plane, but the International Coordination Group called the trial "sham".
  • On July 4, Ukraine, Canada, Sweden, and Britain filed a lawsuit against Iran at the UN International Court of Justice. Iran called the lawsuit "political".