MH17 Wreckage Due In Netherlands On Tuesday
THE HAGUE, Dec 08, 2014 (AFP) -- Wreckage from Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 will arrive from Ukraine at a Dutch air force base on Tuesday where the plane will be reconstructed as part of probe into the crash.
The convoy of lorries carrying pieces of wreckage from Ukraine is due to arrive at the Gilze-Rijen airbase in the south of the country at around 2 pm (1300 GMT), the Dutch Safety Board (OVV) said in a statement on Monday.
The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 was blown out of the sky on July 17 over rebel-held territory in eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board, two-thirds of them Dutch.
Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of supplying pro-Kremlin insurgents with the missile that shot down the jet, but Moscow and the separatists deny they were responsible and have instead pointed the finger at Kiev.
Dutch authorities are charged with establishing exactly what brought the plane down and are reconstructing part of the aircraft as part of their probe.
The convoy of trucks carrying pieces of the Boeing left Ukraine last week and will drive past next of kin on Tuesday who wish to see the wreckage arrive at the base, the OVV said.
"The arrival of the wreckage at the air force base will not be of a ceremonial character and those attending will not be permitted to be present during the opening or unloading of the trucks," it said.
The wreckage will be photographed, scanned and categorised before being reconstructed in a hanger.
The reconstruction will be closed to the public, although next of kin will be allowed to see it if they wish.
A preliminary report in September said that plane "broke up in the air probably as the result of structural damage caused by a large number of high-energy objects that penetrated the aircraft from outside."
A Dutch-led investigation team has so far identified 292 of the dead, but six victims remained unidentified as recovery work at the crash site shut down for the winter.
From Reuters:
Russia says would accept money or warships to solve Mistral dispute
MOSCOW, Dec 8 (Reuters) -- Russia would accept either money or the delivery of two Mistral helicopter carriers to resolve a dispute with France, a Kremlin official said on Monday.
France has suspended indefinitely the delivery of the first of the two warships, citing the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
"Both options will suit us -- either the ships or the money. The money spent must be recovered," Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov told reporters two days after President Vladimir Putin had talks with French President Francois Hollande.
From AFP:
Russsian Car Sales Level Off In November After Steep Fall
Car sales in Russia practically stabilised in November after going into free fall in summer and autumn because of the crisis in Ukraine, industry figures published Monday said.
November saw sales of 229,439 cars, just 1.1 percent less than in November 2013. By contrast, in the summer months, car sales fell 20 to 30 percent year on year, and they were still down 10 percent year on year in October, the Association of European Businesses said in a report.
It attributed November's improved sales to a government cash-for-clunkers programme launched in September, and to people wanting to buy cars before anticipated price rises in the new year.
"Retail demand has been extraordinary in recent weeks, helped by government subsidies and consumers rushing to get ahead of widely anticipated new year price increases," Joerg Schreiber, chairman of the Association of European Businesses automobile manufacturers' committee, was quoted as saying in the report.
Car sales over the first 11 months of 2014 are still down 11.6 percent year on year. The top-selling car make was Lada, and nine of the 10 top-selling models were produced in Russia.
From RFE/RL's News Desk:
The Ukrainian military and pro-Russian separatist leaders in eastern Ukraine say they are prepared to meet in Minsk this week for truce talks.
Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko said Kyiv officials are ready to talk as early as December 9 to try to improve the shaky cease-fire that was originally agreed to in Minsk in September.
Russia also expressed strong support on December 8 for a plan to hold a new round of talks this week involving Ukrainian, Russian, and separatist officials along with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Denis Pushilin, a leader of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, indicated he was also ready for meeting in Minsk this week, but did not say when.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said over the weekend that a preliminary agreement had been reached for a December 9 meeting.