Malaysia Airlines MH17 crash: Merkel, Putin agree on international probe

Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel walk during a meeting in Rio de Janeiro on July 13, 2014. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel walk during a meeting in Rio de Janeiro on July 13, 2014. -- PHOTO: REUTERS

BERLIN (AFP) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed to an international investigation into the downing of a Malaysian plane over Ukraine, and for rapid access to the crash site, Berlin said on Saturday.

The two leaders, who spoke on the telephone, "agreed that an international, independent commission under the direction of ICAO (UN's International Civil Aviation Organization) should quickly have access to the site of the accident... to shed light on the circumstances of the crash and move the victims," said a German government statement.

A Kremlin statement on the same phone call said that "both sides stressed the importance of a thorough and objective investigation of all circumstances relating to what has happened."

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