Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has called on Ukranian leaders to implement an immediate ceasefire in eastern Ukraine after the armistice zone was breached.
Australian Federal Police need a break in hostilities in order to properly access and assess the site where MH17 was shot down.
“We want to urge them to abide by the terms of the UN Security Council resolution which required there to be a ceasefire on both sides,” Bishop told ABC’s 7.30 Report.
“That’s what we have sought from the separatists, and that is what we will be seeking from the Ukrainian leadership because the ceasefire zone has been breached in the last 24 hours.”
The UN has warned that the MH17 disaster may be considered a war crime, while an analysis of the aircraft’s black box has revealed the plane crashed following a loss of pressure after suffering several shrapnel punctures from a missile.
There are currently 190 AFP officers in Ukraine assigned to carry out Operation Bring Them Home. AFP deputy commissioner Andrew Colvin said in Canberra yesterday it could “take weeks to collect the remains and identify the victims” and that some of the remains might not be found.