German Chancellor says those responsible for shooting down plane should be held accountable

Record ID: 1452251

  • Title: German Chancellor says those responsible for shooting down plane should be held accountable
  • Date: 11th January 2020
  • Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JANUARY 11, 2020) (RUSSIAN POOL) GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL AND RUSSIAN PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN WALKING IN FOR PRESS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (German) GERMAN CHANCELLOR ANGELA MERKEL, SAYING: (PARTLY OVERLAID WITH OFFICIALS LISTENING AND VARIOUS SHOTS OF MERKEL) "We spoke about the situation in Iran. And we agree to do everything to keep the JCPUA (Join
  • Embargoed: 25th January 2020 16:00
  • Keywords: Iran Merkel Ukraine muclear treaty plane crash
  • Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
  • City: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
  • Country: Russia
  • Topics: Air Accidents,Disaster/Accidents
  • Reuters ID: LVA001BVQAHC7
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: German chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday (January 11) said those responsible for shooting down Ukraine Airlines Flight 752 earlier in the week should be held accountable.
    Merkel made the comments during a joint media briefing with the Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
    Iran admitted on Saturday its military had mistakenly shot down a Ukrainian plane killing all 176 aboard on Wednesday (January 8), saying air defences were fired in error while on alert in the tense aftermath of Iranian missile strikes on U.S. targets in Iraq.
    The German chancellor also repeated calls for all parties to respect the Iranian nuclear accord, despite Tehran's decision to intensify its enrichment of uranium and moves by the United States to impose economic sanctions.
    Under a deal brokered in 2015, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran agreed with China, France, Germany, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States, to restrict its nuclear program.
    "We agreed that we should do anything to preserve the deal, the JCPOA. Germany is convinced that Iran should not acquire or have nuclear weapons," she added.
    "For this reason we will continue to employ all diplomatic means to keep this agreement alive, which is certainly not perfect but it is an agreement and it comprises commitments by all sides," Merkel said.
    Unlike the United States, which on Friday imposed new economic sanctions on Iran, the Europeans have given Tehran more time to avoid nuclear proliferation rather than begin a process that could lead to a reimposition of U.N. sanctions.
    (Production Credit: Ute Swart)
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