Poroshenko: ‘This is a wake-up call for the whole world’

Today the war has overspilled from the territory of Ukraine.

Over the past months  Ukraine was overwhelmed by the events caused by the aggressors and militaries in the East of the country. But the tragedy which took place in the Ukrainian skies today is horrendous.      

Today terrorists killed three hundred people with one shot. Among them innocent children, people of many countries of the world.

Terrorists shot down a civilian Malaysian airlines aircraft, which was on route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur at the altitude of 10 thousand meters.

I and all Ukrainians grieve for the hundreds of innocent passengers who sadly have become victims of an aggression against us.

We offer our compassion to the relatives of those passengers and crew who will not see their loved ones again. For weeks we have shed tears over our own dead. We have tears left for the innocent victims of this crime.   

Today Ukraine mourns with you.

The State Security Service of Ukraine has intercepted a conversation in which one of the leaders of the mercenaries boasted about bringing down the plane in his reporting to his Russian supervisor, colonel of the General Intelligence Unit of RussiaТs Armed Forces. Other terrorists have also boasted about their success.

In the past couple of days it is the third tragic incident, following two Ukrainian military planes which were shot down.

I have just spoken with President Barack Obama, with Prime Ministers of the Netherlands and Malaysia as countries whose large numbers of citizens lost their lives in this tragedy.

I have ordered the government of Ukraine to create an investigation commission. It will join efforts with the experts of the International Civil Aviation Organization and representatives from the Netherlands, Malaysia and the United States. 

Every possible search and rescue will be made. We will do everything possible for the objective international investigation. It is very unfortunate that the terrorists have already declared their desire to hide the evidence and transport the aircraftТs black boxes to Moscow.

Today’s tragedy proves again that terrorism is not a local, but a global issue. RussiaТs aggression against Ukraine is not only our problem, but a threat to the European and global security. Addressing this threat requires a unified global response.

By today it is evident that militaries in the east of Ukraine cannot go on alone. Russia more and more often militarily intervenes against Ukraine. Our territory is being fired on from across the border. Our planes are being shot down. Russia supplies military personnel and state of the art weapons. The hybrid war is showing all signs of an external aggression.

In the past couple of weeks, thanks to the courage and heroism of our soldiers, the territory, controlled by the terrorists, bandits and Russian mercenaries has decreased by more than half.

Each and every citizen of Ukraine is fighting for our independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Today, the whole world had seen the real face of the aggressor.

Shooting down a civilian aircraft is an act of international terrorism, targeted against the entire world.

This is a wake-up call for the whole world. 

 We expect for an adequate response from the international community.