Letter of 14 April 2015 to the House of Representatives from the Minister of Security and Justice, Ard van der Steur, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bert Koenders, the Minister of Defence, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, and the State Secretary for Infrastructure and the Environment, Wilma Mansveld, concerning the state of affairs with regard to the MH17 air disaster We are writing, on behalf of the prime minister, to give you an overview of the current state of affairs with regard to the disaster involving Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. This letter will also discuss the following: • the request made by the Permanent Committee on Foreign Affairs (and Security and Justice), hereinafter ‘VKC’, for a response to the report on RTL Nieuws entitled ‘It was a BUK missile’ (20 March, 201504979/2015D10238); • the VKC’s request concerning the consequences of the amnesty arrangement in the Minsk Agreement of 12 February 2015 for suspected perpetrators of or persons responsible for the downing of flight MH17 (additional to the previous response of 12 February 2015, House of Representatives, 2014-2015, 33997-35); • MP Raymond de Roon’s request (7 April) for a letter concerning the report entitled ‘Secret report leaked: the Netherlands knew about MH17 air defence missiles’ (Rtlnieuws.nl, 4 April 2015) and the debate requested previously by MP Pieter Omtzigt on the same subject (22 January 2015): • the actions resulting from the motion submitted by MP Sjoerd Sjoerdsma on consultations with the aviation sector with a view to improving information gathering and risk analysis (House of Representatives, 2014-2015, 33997-32, 12 February 2015). As ever, the government remains fully focused on the three previously stated objectives: 1. repatriating human remains and personal belongings; 2. investigating the circumstances of the crash; 3. conducting a criminal investigation. Fact-finding mission and possible resumption of the repatriation mission Due to weather conditions and the security situation, the National Forensic Investigation Team (LTFO) has been unable to conduct any forensic investigation at the fire-ravaged sites over the past few months. The intention was always to resume the operation as soon as the circumstances allowed, preceded by a fact-finding mission (FFM). AVT15/JU115207B 1 The FFM was carried out from 20 to 28 March 2015, to gain insight into the necessary conditions and parameters in the area around Donetsk and at the two fire-ravaged sites. The entire operation is being led by Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg of the National Police. When the repatriation mission is resumed by the Interim Presence of the Combined Interagency Task Force (IP-CTJF) at the crash site, led by a representative of the Ministry of Defence, the emphasis will very clearly be on forensic investigation. The government also hopes that the results of the mission, and the repatriation of human remains that took place on 28 March, will lead to identification of the last two Dutch victims. The task force will also assess when recently found personal belongings can be transported to the Netherlands. During the FFM, experts from the National Police (NP) and the Ministry of Defence established that the actual soil conditions and other local conditions are currently favourable. After Orthodox Easter (from Wednesday 15 April) and if the security situation allows, the repatriation mission will resume its activities at the crash site. It is estimated that it will take 14 working days to recover practically all human remains still at the site. A team of experts from the NP and the Defence organisation will dig up part of the soil and search it by hand on site. Malaysian and Australian experts will also be assisting. The repatriation mission’s home base is at Kharkiv. Part of the mission team will travel back and forth from Donetsk to the crash site every day. No one will stay overnight at the crash site. The Ukrainian State Emergency Service (SES) will again be assisting on site, through the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). The OSCE team in Donetsk will escort the team to and from the crash site. This local OSCE team in Donetsk plays an important role in providing local security advice. They are very well informed in terms of local sentiment and possible threats. If any human remains or personal belongings are found after the mission has ended, they can be handed in to the local authorities so that they can be transported to the Netherlands. Previous agreements on this matter still stand. Security situation in eastern Ukraine The security situation in eastern Ukraine has remained practically unchanged over the past few weeks. The number of clashes and other violent incidents has dropped. Distrust between the parties prevails, however, and fighting could break out again without warning. Some small-scale skirmishes are still taking place, but there are no signs that the fighting will flare up again in the very near future. The security situation around the crash site improved AVT15/JU115207B 2 recently because the front line has moved. This development depends heavily on the parties’ intentions regarding the Minsk II agreement. Up to now, there have been conflicting indications in this respect. There are signs that internal tensions are rising among the rebel groups. This may lead to violent incidents in the separatist hinterland, which includes the crash site. Identification process DNA profiles have been obtained from all human remains received in the Netherlands before 28 March 2015, insofar as it was technically possible. For some remains it was impossible to establish a DNA profile. The team in Hilversum again received human remains on 28 March. These have been categorised and samples have been taken from some for profiling by the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI). It is expected that the repatriation mission will recover more human remains. The aim is to identify the last two victims. Samples must therefore be taken from all human remains and the investigation in Hilversum and at the NFI may take several more months. Returning the identified remains currently still in Hilversum is a process carried out with great care and in consultation with the next of kin. Many of the next of kin have opted to wait before receiving the identified remains, in the hope that more remains will be identified. This, too, means that the activities in Hilversum are set to continue for some time. Most of the death certificates for the non-Dutch victims have now been issued and the authorities are working hard to issue the remaining death certificates. The embassies of the countries involved are given regular progress reports. Next of kin In the week of 2 March 2015 the Dutch Safety Board (OVV) offered the next of kin of the victims the opportunity to see the wreckage of the aircraft. In total, 533 next of kin of 151 victims, including victims from abroad, made use of that opportunity. At Gilze-Rijen Air Base they were taken to the three locations holding pieces of wreckage: the hangar where the investigation is being conducted and the two shelters where the rest of the wreckage is being stored. In the hangar, the next of kin were able to stand on a platform to view the wreckage parts most relevant to the investigation, and they had an opportunity to lay flowers. The family liaison offers and the case managers from Victim Support Netherlands played an important role in the preparations for this visit and on the day. AVT15/JU115207B 3 The next of kin are kept informed of relevant developments through the Information and Referral Centre and in twice-weekly newsletters. Case manager support will remain available throughout 2015. The family liaison officers remain in contact with the next of kin regarding the criminal investigation. Remembrance ceremony on 17 July The next of kin united in the MH17 Foundation are organising a remembrance ceremony on 17 July 2015 at the same location in Nieuwegein where previous gatherings have been held for the next of kin. Central government, Victim Support Netherlands and Impact (part of the Arq Psychotrauma Specialist Group) will provide the Foundation support in organising the commemoration. The costs of the commemoration will be borne by central government. Airspace safety / civil aviation safety Following the motion submitted by MP Sjoerd Sjoerdsma and others (House of Representatives, 2014-2015, 33997-32, 12 February 2015) an assessment was made, together with the Dutch airlines and the Dutch Airline Pilots Association (VNV), of what form consultations should take on improving information gathering and risk analysis with regard to flying over conflict zones. It was decided on the basis of that assessment that further consultations would be held at the end of this month, under joint chairmanship of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment and the Ministry of Justice. The meeting will discuss the international developments at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), as well as the Dutch system of information- sharing and risk analysis. The State Secretary for Infrastructure and the Environment informed you by letter of 25 March concerning the implementation of the motion, progress within the ICAO and the specific ICAO Task Force on Risks to Civil Aviation arising from Conflict Zones (House of Representatives, 2014-2015, 31936-263, 25 March 2015). Technical investigation The technical investigation by the Dutch Safety Board (OVV) into the circumstances of the crash is well under way. The OVV has said it expects to complete the report in October 2015. AVT15/JU115207B 4 Criminal investigation International cooperation on the criminal investigation is still progressing well, both in the Netherlands and at the ‘field office’ in Ukraine, where the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) countries share information.