"By the end of the year, maybe early next year, the list of those that we believe should be held accountable will be confirmed and then there must be a prosecution," Bishop said in an interview with Australian state broadcaster ABC, Reuters reports.
International investigators said on Wednesday the passenger plane was downed by a Russian-made missile fired from a pro-Russian rebel village in eastern Ukraine.
Read alsoMH17 probe: precise route of Buk transportation from Russia into Ukraine revealed (Photos)The findings counter Moscow's suggestion that the flight, en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur in July 2014, was brought down by Ukraine's military rather than the separatists. All 298 people on board, including 28 Australians, were killed.
Read alsoDutch government rebukes Russian ambassador over MH17 remarksBishop said the culprits could face an international tribunal, similar to the one used to prosecute those responsible for the 1988 bombing of a PanAm flight over Lockerbie, Scotland.
