Pato backs UN decision over MH17

 FOREIGN Affairs Minister Rimbink Pato has welcomed the unanimous decision of the United Nations Security Council to allow full and unrestricted access for investigators to the crash site of the Malaysia Airlines jet in eastern Ukraine.

“Through a unanimous decision, of 15 votes to 0, members of the Security Council have made their views heard,” he said in a statement yesterday.

“The priority must be for search and recovery teams to be able to access the expansive crash site, and for investigators to be able to do their job.

“There must be no impediments placed in the way of the investigator, and the dignity of the deceased must be respected.”

Pato said the circumstances surrounding the loss of MH17 are almost unprecedented in the history of modern aviation and provides a number of challenges to the international community.

“More than 30 years ago, KAL007 was lost in tragic circumstances and at the height of the Cold War, search rescue and investigation was severely hampered,” he said.

“I hope our partners in the United Nations can demonstrate the restraint and good will that is required to deal with this tragic event.”