SYDNEY: Australia will Friday summon the Russian ambassador over the crash of a Malaysia Airlines plane in Ukraine, with Prime Minister Tony Abbott saying it looked more like a crime than an accident.
Abbott said he owed it to the families of those onboard, including 27 Australians, to find out exactly what happened to the aircraft which was travelling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur.
"As things stand, this looks less like an accident than a crime," he told parliament.
"And if so, the perpetrators must be brought to justice," he added to cries of "hear, hear".
Abbott said Australia would as quickly as possible work for a binding resolution at the United Nations Security Council calling for a full and impartial investigation.
This would require full access to the site, the debris, the black box and "all individuals who might be in a position to shed light on this terrible event", he said.
"The minister for foreign affairs will shortly summon the Russian ambassador to seek a categoric assurance from the ambassador that the Russian government will fully cooperate in this investigation," he said.
Abbott said a department of foreign affairs team would be departing soon for Kiev, and bodies would be repatriated as soon as possible.
"The bullying of small countries by big ones, the trampling of justice and decency in the pursuit of national aggrandisement, and reckless indifference to human life should have no place in our world," he added.
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