Dutch PM: “Punching below the belt” to say MH17 was a cover up
A clearly angry Prime Minister Mark Rutte called it "punching below the belt" when parliamentarians Louis Bontes and Pieter Omtzigt accused him and the government of covering up facts about flight MH17 during a parliamentary debate on the disaster on Tuesday, RTL Nieuws reports.
"The idea that the government allows a cover up because of trade with Russia or socializing with the Ukraine, is total nonsense" Rutte said. He added that he talks about MH17 every time he comes into contact with Russian president Vladimir Putin.
The Prime Minister also stated that the two still unidentified MH17 victims will likely never be identified. He called the chance of identification "unfortunately very small". On March 21st last year 296 of the 298 victims were identified.
Minister Ard van der Steur of Security and Justice agreed, but added that attempts will be made to obtain DNA profiles from tiny pieces of remains using new technologies. That may lead to identification. "The chance of this happening is extremely small. How annoying that may be", he stressed, according to NU.
The Tweede Kamer, lower house of Dutch parliament, was mostly critical of the government during the debate. Parliamentarians believe that the investigation into who is responsible for the MH17 disaster is taking too long. Opposition parties are also insisting that radar images need to be retrieved from the Ukraine.
