Nations of Iran crash victims seek compensation for families

Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada Minister of Foreign Affairs, centre, Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs Vadym Prystaiko, second right, United Kingdoms Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Dominic Raab, second left, Sweden's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ann Linde, left, and Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Idrees Zaman, hold a minute of silence behind candles and in front of a plaque with the names of the victims of flight PS752, at the High Commission of Canada in London, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. The Foreign ministers gather in a meeting of the International Coordination and Response Group for the families of the victims of PS752 flight crashed shortly after taking off from the Iranian capital Tehran on Jan. 8, killing all 176 passengers and crew on board.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein) Francois-Philippe Champagne, Canada Minister of Foreign Affairs, centre, Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs Vadym Prystaiko, second right, United Kingdoms Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Dominic Raab, second left, Sweden's Minister of Foreign Affairs Ann Linde, left, and Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Idrees Zaman, hold a minute of silence behind candles and in front of a plaque with the names of the victims of flight PS752, at the High Commission of Canada in London, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020. The Foreign ministers gather in a meeting of the International Coordination and Response Group for the families of the victims of PS752 flight crashed shortly after taking off from the Iranian capital Tehran on Jan. 8, killing all 176 passengers and crew on board.(AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

By JILL LAWLESS / The Associated Press January 16, 2020 4 min read

LONDON (AP) – The governments of five countries that lost citizens when Iran shot down a Ukrainian airliner demanded Thursday that Tehran accept “full responsibility” and pay compensation to the victims’ families – though they had little to offer besides moral pressure to get Iran to comply.

After a meeting in London, foreign ministers from Canada, the U.K., Afghanistan, Sweden and Ukraine urged Iran to allow a “thorough, independent and transparent international investigation,” as well as a criminal probe and “impartial” judicial proceedings against those found responsible for downing the plane.

All 176 people aboard the Ukraine International Airlines aircraft died when it was brought down by ballistic missiles shortly after taking off from Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport on Jan. 8.

The victims included 57 Canadian citizens as well as 11 Ukrainians, 17 people from Sweden, four Afghans and four British citizens, as well as Iranians.

“We are here to pursue closure, accountability, transparency and justice” for the victims, Canadian Foreign Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said after meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko, Swedish Foreign Affairs Minister Ann Linde, Afghan Acting Foreign Minister Idrees Zaman, British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab and U.K. Middle East Minister Andrew Murrison..