PARIS, July 21 (RIA Novosti) – French President Francois Hollande has called on his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to exert his influence on Ukraine's independence supporters to transfer the flight data recorders of the downed Malaysian airliner to “competent government authorities,” the Elysee presidential palace said in a statement.
On Sunday, the French leader held a phone conversation with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi and Russian President Putin. Earlier, Hollande discussed the situation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and UK Prime Minister David Cameron.
“He [Hollande] shared with Mr. Abbott and Mr. Renzi concerns about carrying out reliable, free and detailed investigation into the MH17 flight. He told Mr. Putin about this and called on him to use his influence to make Ukrainian [militia] stop blocking the investigation and the work of rescuers and also transfer the flight data recorders to authorities,” the statement said.
The French leader has also called for progress in resolving the issues related to reaching ceasefire in Ukraine, freeing hostages and the situation over border control.
Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Borodai said Sunday independence supporters discovered objects resembling the flight data recorders which have been taken to Donetsk.
Independence supporters plan to transfer the flight data recorders to experts from the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and refuse to give them to Kiev fearing that results of the investigation may be falsified.
The Malaysia Airlines plane en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur crashed on July 17 near the town of Torez in Ukraine’s Donetsk Region, killing 298 people.
Kiev has accused independence supporters of downing the Malaysian airliner. Self-defense militia members insist that they have no required technology to shoot a target at altitude of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles).
