Malaysia Airlines MH17 crash: Malaysia to send expert team to join investigations

KIEV (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Malaysia has sent an expert three-man team to participate in investigations at the MH17 crash site, Transport minister Liow Tiong Lai said on Monday.

Mr Liow said that the team was selected after the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) had requested Malaysia to nominate three accredited experts, media reports said.

Mr Liow added that OSCE also assured them that it had held discussions with the Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatist groups regarding the security and safety of the team.

"We have given top priority to their safety and have asked OSCE many times for reassurance. It is our plane and we need to find out who shot us down. We are now moving in to ensure we are part of this exercise," he told reporters in Kiev.

The team, who will send progress updates to Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) director-general Datuk Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, left at around 8pm Ukraine time (1am Singapore time) Monday.

Two team members from the DCA are Capt Philip Joseph Selvaraju, 42 and Mohd Naemy Fahimy Mustapa, 38, while the third member is Malaysia Airlines engineering director Azahari Dahlan, 53.

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.