The Dutch government on July 10 decided to bring Russia before the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for its role in the downing of Flight MH17 over occupied Donbas on July 17, 2014.
"By submitting an inter-State application, the government is sharing all available and relevant information about the downing of Flight MH17 with the ECHR," the Dutch government said in a statement on its website.
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The contents of the inter-State application will also be incorporated into the Netherlands' intervention in the individual applications submitted by the victims' next of kin against Russia to the ECHR.
"By taking this course of action the government is offering maximum support to these individual cases," the statement said. "What is more, by submitting this inter-State application, the Netherlands stands by all 298 MH17 victims, of 17 different nationalities, and their next of kin."
"Achieving justice for the 298 victims of the downing of Flight MH17 is and will remain the government's highest priority," the statement quoted Dutch Foreign Minister Stef Blok as saying.
The UN Security Council will be notified of this step as well.
The Dutch government says it attaches importance to continuing the meetings with Russia on the matter of state responsibility. "The purpose of these meetings is to find a solution that does justice to the enormous suffering and damage cause by the downing of Flight MH17," the statement said.
"Nearly six years since the downing of Flight MH17, which killed all 298 people on board, the pursuit of truth, justice and accountability remains the top priority for the Dutch government. The government has always said that it would not rule out any legal remedy to achieve this goal. This latest course of action brings us one step closer," it said.
