UK Government Still Sending Arms To Russia

By Alistair Bunkall, Defence Correspondent

The UK Government is still exporting weapons to Russia despite the shooting down of flight MH17 and previously promising to cancel all arms-related contracts to Moscow.

As of May, there were 285 outstanding licences allowing UK companies to export arms either to Russia or to another country which might then in time sell weapons to Russia.

This is despite the former Foreign Secretary William Hague promising the House of Commons in March that "the UK will now, with immediate effect, suspend all extant licences and application processing for licences for direct export to Russia for military and dual-use items destined for Russian armed forces."

To date, only 34 of the 285 contracts have been cancelled.

The list of arms and parts that UK companies sell to Russia includes sniper rifles, body armour, assault rifles, communications equipment, small arms ammunition and night sights.

The total value of the contracts is £132m.

The Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Arms Export Controls, Sir John Stanley MP, has written to the current Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond, asking whether the government plans to revoke the remaining licences.

In response to the figures, the Foreign Office issued a statement saying the "majority of export licences that remain in place for Russia are for commercial use but we are keeping all licences under review".

"This Government has not approved any licences for the export of rifles or ammunition to the Russian military," the statement added.

Across the whole of the EU, licences amounted to almost £160m or 200m Euros in military sales to Russia last year.

To add some context, the UK sent £4m of arms to Ukraine in 2013 - the EU total to Kiev was £30m.

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MH17 Crash Victims' Bodies Loaded Onto Plane

Coffins containing the bodies of the first 50 victims of downed Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 are being loaded onto aircraft to be flown back to the Netherlands from the crash site in eastern Ukraine.

Two military aircraft - a Dutch C130 Hercules and an Australian Boeing C17 - will fly the bodies to Eindhoven from Kharkiv Airport where they will be met by relatives, the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and members of the Dutch royal family.

Sky's Michelle Clifford, at the airport, said: "The real difficulty is planes are going to be coming in with bodies on board - but none of those families know whether their loved ones are going to be on those planes."

Simon Smith, Britain's ambassador to Ukraine, also at the scene, told Sky News: "This is an extremely difficult operation that requires a lot of different nations coming together to pool their skills and expertise."

An aircraft waiting at Kharkiv Airport to fly bodies to the Netherlands

A national day of mourning for the 298 people on board the downed Malaysia Airlines plane, the majority of whom were Dutch, has been declared for today, including a silent march in Amsterdam for the victims this evening.

A minute's silence will be held before a motorcade takes the bodies to the Korporaal van Oudheusden military barracks in Hilversum, where the long process of identifying the remains will begin.

Mr Rutte has warned the identification process could take weeks or even months.

A British team of police officers, led by the Metropolitan Police, will help identify the victims.

floral tributes for the victims of MH17 at Schiphol Airport, near Amsterdam

The Boeing 777-200 took off from Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, bound for Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia last Thursday when it was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

The bodies of the victims were released by rebels in Ukraine on Tuesday, who said the remains of 282 people were on board a refrigerated train.

However, a member of the Dutch forensics team said there were only 200 bodies, in addition to some body parts. It is thought more than 80 bodies have been left at the scene.

A Malaysian air crash investigator inspects the crash site of MH17

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said it was still unclear how many bodies had arrived in Kharkiv and how many may have been left behind.

Investigators from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) at the crash scene confirmed there were still some unrecovered human remains and "smaller body parts".

The jet's two black box flight data recorders have also been handed over by separatists and will be examined by British experts from the UK Air Accidents Investigation Branch in Farnborough, Hampshire.

Russia has been accused of arming the pro-Russian rebels who are suspected of shooting down the plane.

A train carrying the bodies of some of the victims of flight MH17

As a result, the EU has agreed to impose sanctions on more Russian officials.

A senior US intelligence official said they believed pro-Russian separatists shot down the flight by mistake.

He confirmed evidence suggests the Russian government was not directly involved in causing the crash, but it "created the conditions" for the plane to be brought down by the rebels.

The official added Moscow was still supplying separatists with tanks and rocket launchers.

President Barack Obama visited the Dutch embassy in Washington on Tuesday and wrote in a condolence book: "We will not rest until we are certain that justice is done."

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Putin: MH17 Observers Need To Be Protected

Vladimir Putin has vowed to "do everything to ensure the security and safety" of experts investigating the Malaysia Airlines atrocity.

The Russian President said "all people" in Ukraine are responsible to the families of the 298 people lost when flight MH17 was brought down by a missile launcher last week.

"No one has the right to use this tragedy for any kind of vested interest in the political sense. Such incidents should unite people rather than separate them," Mr Putin said.

"It is necessary that all people who are responsible for the situation in the region of Ukraine improve their responsibility to their own people, and to the people of the countries whose representatives have been victims of this crash.

"We need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site."

Mr Putin's comments came after US Secretary of State John Kerry said intelligence assessments had provided overwhelming evidence of Russian complicity in the downing of MH17.

Mr Kerry also demanded Russia take responsibility for the actions of pro-Moscow rebels in Eastern Ukraine, branding their mishandling of victims' bodies as "grotesque".

British Chancellor George Osborne told Sky News that tougher sanctions against Russia "may well be required".

A woman and a child view tributes to the victims at Schiphol Airport

Ukrainian government investigators say 251 of the 298 bodies have now been found at the site, and will be taken away on a second train loaded with refrigerator wagons.

They said the first train carrying 192 bodies is stuck in the town of Torez because "terrorists are blocking its exit".

Mr Putin has promised Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte he will help retrieve bodies and black boxes from the crash site.

However, Mary Dejevsky, a Russian and EU analyst, told Sky News that Mr Putin controls rebels in the area "far less than is commonly believed outside Russia".

She said no-one controls the area which is "one of the reasons why things are so desperate there".

People work at the crash site of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17

As public anger grows over claims of looting and evidence being tampered with at the crash site, Mr Kerry threatened "additional steps" against Moscow, while calling on European allies to take a tougher stance with sanctions.

He stopped short of blaming Moscow directly for shooting down the jet, but argued there was an overwhelming case that Russia had equipped insurgents with the sophisticated missile system needed to destroy an aircraft flying at 33,000ft.

"It's pretty clear that this is a system that was transferred from Russia," Mr Kerry said.

Moscow has denied any involvement and has blamed Ukrainian forces for bringing down the airliner.

The UN Security Council will today vote on a resolution to condemn the downing of the aircraft.

The resolution, drafted by Australia, demands that those responsible for bringing the plane down will be held accountable, and that armed groups do not compromise the integrity of the crash site.

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MH17: 'Terrorists Blocking Train Of Bodies'

The first train containing bodies from the MH17 crash site is being blocked by "terrorists", the Ukrainian government has said.

In a statement, the government said the train, which is carrying the remains of 200 victims, is stuck at the station in the town of Torez.

Rescuers have found 251 bodies of the 298 victims in the area where the Malaysia Airlines flight came down in eastern Ukraine on Thursday, the statement went on.

Some 86 body parts have also been recovered.

The blocking of the train comes despite comments from Russian President Vladimir Putin that "we need to do everything to ensure the security and safety of the observers and the experts working at the crash site".

Sky's Katie Stallard, reporting in Moscow, said: "The Ukraine government uses the word terrorists, we would probably use the word rebels or separatists.

"If President Putin's statement was meant to move those people or indicate to them that they should now co-operate, that is plainly not happening."

Refrigerator wagons will take bodies away from the crash site

A second train with refrigerator wagons to take the remains away has arrived in the area.

The destinations of the trains is not known.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian government forces are trying to break into the rebel-held city of Donetsk, according to reports from the separatists.

Fighting is under way near the city's railway station, with reports of four government and two rebel tanks heading to the area.

More follows...

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Russia 'Arming Thugs' Blamed For MH17 Crash

Britain Warns Putin: World's Eyes Are On You

Updated: 8:48pm UK, Saturday 19 July 2014

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has warned Vladimir Putin the "world's eyes are on Russia to make sure she delivers" on her obligations to the victims killed in the Ukraine plane disaster.

His comments come as David Cameron and Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte called for the European Union to "reconsider its approach to Russia" in light of evidence pro-Moscow separatists brought down the flight on Thursday.

Mr Cameron also spoke to Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, while Britain's Russian ambassador has been summoned to the Foreign Office.

The UK's response follows accusations pro-Russian separatists removed 38 bodies from the crash scene and attempted to destroy evidence at the site.

The Ukraine government said "terrorists, with the help of Russia, are trying to destroy evidence of international crimes," adding it had obtained data which showed bodies had been taken to a morgue in Donetsk.

Dutch Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans said the Netherlands was "angry" and "furious" by allegations bodies were being dragged around the site.

However, Sky's Chief Correspondent Stuart Ramsay, at the scene, said there were reports rebels had moved bodies on Friday, but body parts were now officially being removed by Ukraine emergency ministry staff.

Mr Hammond, who chaired an emergency Cobra meeting on Saturday, accused Russia of not doing enough to move separatists from the site.

"We're not getting enough support from the Russians, we're not seeing Russia using their influence effectively enough to get the separatists, who are in control of the site, to allow the access that we need," he said.

"This is not about Russia and the West, this is about the whole community demanding that proper access is made available to this site, the victims are properly recovered, and evidence is secured."

Ukraine's Security Council said 18sq km of the 25sq km had been explored and 186 bodies found, while there have been discussions between the two factions over the creation of a "security zone" around the crash scene following allegations of looting and evidence being compromised.

Concerns have been raised by Malaysia about the investigation as a team of international observers complained of being confronted by aggressive armed rebels.

A Ukraine Security Council spokesman said 15 pieces of military equipment were brought over the border from Russia into the eastern Luhansk region overnight.

Critically, the monitors have been unable to speak to anyone about the whereabouts of the jet's two black box voice and data recorders.

However, Alexander Borodai, head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, denied rebels had shot down the plane, found the black boxes, or removed bodies. But he said body parts which had fallen into people's homes had been taken away.

British experts are due to join the investigation at the crash site over the weekend.

Some 298 people including 10 Britons and 80 children were killed when flight MH17, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry agreed on Saturday that both countries would use their influence on the two sides of the Ukraine conflict to end hostilities

:: The Foreign Office has set up a helpline for anyone concerned.  Text MH17 to +447860010026, or call 020 7008 1500. Malaysia Airlines's emergency line is 00 6 037 884 1234.

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Rebels Call For Truce To Allow MH17 Probe

Pro-Russian separatists have said they will grant monitors safe access to the Malaysia Airlines crash site if Kiev agrees a truce.

Andrei Purgin, deputy PM of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic said his troops would "guarantee the safety of international experts on the scene" as soon as a deal with Ukraine was struck on a ceasefire.

If the offer was rejected by Kiev, he warned it would suggest the government was made up of "dangerous lunatics, bloodthirsty maniacs (who are) dangerous not only for the residents of Donbass but also for the world community".

The move came as world leaders piled pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the armed Moscow-backed rebels from preventing investigators from fully accessing the MH17 crash site.

A message left among floral tributes outside the Dutch Embassy in Kiev

British Prime Minister David said Europe and the West must "fundamentally change our approach" unless Mr Putin alters his stance.

Writing in the Sunday Times Mr Cameron said: "The growing weight of evidence points to a clear conclusion: that MH17 was blown out of the sky by a surface-to-air missile fired from a rebel-held area.

"If it is the case, then we must be clear what it means: this is a direct result of Russia destabilising a sovereign state, violating its territorial integrity, backing thuggish militias, and training and arming them."

The prospect of further sanctions against Russia was raised as public anger and concerns grow over claims of looting and evidence being compromised.

The US has condemned the lack of security at the scene, while Malaysia has attacked the failure to preserve evidence as a "betrayal of the lives lost".

International monitors and journalists are confronted by armed separatists

US Secretary of State John Kerry told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov  reports that the remains of some victims and debris from the site are being tampered with or inappropriately removed from the site amounted to an an "affront to all those who lost loved ones and to the dignity the victims deserve".

Critically, investigators have been unable to speak to anyone about the whereabouts of the jet's two black box voice and data recorders.

Ukraine has said they have not been handed over to Kiev and it has no information about them, while the rebels have denied shooting down the plane, finding the black boxes, and rubbished claims they have removed bodies from the crash site.

All 298 passengers including 10 Britons and 80 children were killed when flight MH17, flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, was brought down near Grabovo, Donetsk, where Ukrainian forces have been battling separatists.

Kiev and Moscow have blamed each other for the disaster.

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'Devastating': Tributes For UK Plane Victims

Ten Britons are now confirmed to have been among the 298 people on board flight MH17, which was shot down in Ukraine.

Friends and colleagues today paid tribute to the British victims named, including Leeds University student Richard Mayne, 20, from Leicestershire.

He had recently completed a charity trek to Everest Base Camp was described as a man who had a "great thirst for life" and "wanted to make the world a better place" by his former headteacher.

John Wood, from the Dixie Grammar School in Nuneaton, said: "Richard was an extremely pleasant and thoughtful young man who gave his time generously for everyone."

Richard Mayne during a trip to Nepal (L) and Ben Pocock (R). Pics: Facebook

His sister Scarlett posted a picture of her and Richard on Instagram with the caption: "Always been my hero. Forever loved, never forgotten."

Ben Pocock was flying to Australia to begin a professional placement and study, Loughborough University said.

His family have spoken of their "devastation".

"He was a gifted academic, talented athlete but more importantly a warm, caring, fun-loving son and brother who had an extremely bright future ahead of him," they said.

"Ben is going to be terribly missed not only by his family but by the wider Keynsham community where he made so many long-lasting friends."

Helicopter pilot Cameron Dalziel. Pic: Facebook

The latest British victim to be confirmed is Cameron Dalziel, a 42-year-old helicopter pilot living in South Africa.

His brother Campbell Dalziel said he "couldn't believe" his brother was gone: "It was [Thursday evening] while we were watching Sky News - he had been in Amsterdam at a conference.

"If the reports are credible and true we are saddened by this news. It's not only him that was taken away from us.

"From an early age he always believed in helping people you know and encouraging people from being a lifeguard on the beach to flying helicopters.

"He was part of the sea rescue team. He never ever wanted recognition just you know he enjoyed it. He loved doing it. If he didn't love it he wouldn't do it."

Newcastle United fans Liam Sweeney (L) and John Alder

Newcastle United fans, John Alder and Liam Sweeney, who were travelling to see their football team play in New Zealand, also died in the crash, according to NUFC.com and the Newcastle Evening Chronicle.

Newcastle United said the pair were among the club's most loyal supporters.

Managing Director Lee Charnley said: "The loss of John and Liam is truly devastating news.

"Both men were dedicated supporters of our Club and were known to thousands of fans and staff alike."

Glenn Thomas was on his way to an Aids conference. Pic: Facebook

Glenn Thomas, 49, from Blackpool, was among 100 delegates reportedly on their way to the International Aids Society (IAS) summit in Melbourne, Australia.

Friends spoke of their shock and loss of the media officer at the World Health Organisation (WHO) in Geneva.

WHO spokeswoman Fadela Chaib said: "We have lost a wonderful person and a great professional. Our hearts are broken. We are all in shock."

Stephen Anderson, 44, was reported by the Daily Telegraph to be among the dead.

The former RAF search and rescue co-ordinator, he grew up and worked in Britain before moving to Penang in Malaysia four years with his wife Joanna, 37, where he worked as a technician for Maersk Drilling.

Mr Anderson had spent 23 years with the RAF, including running the search and rescue team at Lossiemouth in Scotland for three years.

Mr Anderson's niece reportedly posted photos on Twitter yesterday with the message: "Rest in Peace Uncle Steve. You didn't deserve to die. No one on that flight did. I love you so much."

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