Notwithstanding the jingoistic hysteria in the mainstream Western press…. 
(and also see The Guardian’s “Vladimir Putin given One last Chance” about who they “know” ( before the facts are in) was responsible for the destruction of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 over Eastern Ukraine on March 8th 2014. It is important to remember that both sides in this conflict, ( the Kiev Poroshenko government, as well as the Right Sektor (neo-nazis) in Kiev and their Western supporters on one side, and the pro-separatists in Eastern Ukraine and their Russian supporters on the other) have a lot to gain from pinning the blame on the opposing forces. The first casualty of war is truth, as they say. As Goebbel’s “Principles of Propaganda theory” acknowledges, implanting information early in people’s minds on a new situation often results in that information “sticking”- regardless of its veracity. And as Vera Graziade so eruditely says: When you have one big bad figure, and everything is Putin’s fault, the world is simple and you don’t need to think anymore.
Its important also to recognise that plane crash investigations take time. eg the Lockerbie investigators took three years to come to their somewhat controversial decision as to how the crash occurred and who was responsible. What we do know:
- On entering Ukrainian air space, MH17 was requested to lower altitude from 35,000 to 33,000 feet because of thunderstorms.
- Pilots were later requested by Ukrainian flight authorizes to fly further north -towards the Russian border and deeper into Eastern Ukraine ‘because of other traffic”
- Malaysian Airlines continued to fly over this conflict zone where several other international carriers has already charted alternative routes to avoid the conflict airspace. However there were a number of other international passenger flights flying over the area during that day.
- Single operator (MANPAD) surface to air missiles are not capable of reaching 33,000 feet – the Russian BUK surface to air system produced and operated by Russian and Ukrainian armies (earlier version), are capable of reaching 33,000 feet but require extensive radar truck backup for tracking.
- Separatists rebels in Eastern Ukraine were not known to have acquired a BUK system, however possibly could have done so and mistaken MH17 for a Ukraine government transport plane. (although unlikely as the plane’s altitude would logically have been considered too high for such an operation within Ukrainian airspace). If the rebels had acquired a BUK system, where is it now?-not any easy thing to hide and it would have been observed by sattelite re-crossing the border into Russia.
- Several BUK systems had been deployed to the Eastern Ukraine in the last 3 to 4 days by the Kiev government (presumably to shoot down Russian military aircraft)
- Kiev government states that pro-separatists initially claim shooting down a Ukrainian transport plane in the area at the time and then remove that claim. Other bloggers claim that experts have determined that the tweets were made the day before the plane was shot down.
- The coincidence of two passenger aircraft being destroyed in the air, by unknown causes, with all passengers and crew killed, from the same airline within five months of each other, is problematic
- It is unlikely that pro-Russian separatist would and could operate such a system without Russian technical support, as it requires a sophisticated accompanying radar system. -the alternative is, as the U.S. speculates, is that the Russians were providing supporting expertise to the rebels. Note that defensetech.org states that:A standard Buk battalion consists of a command vehicle, target acquisition radar (TAR) vehicle, six transporter erector launcher and radar (TELAR) vehicles and three transporter erector launcher (TEL) vehicles. A Buk missile battery consists of two TELAR and one TEL vehicle. So is this not some simple, easy to manoeuvre and disguise missile system!!
- However it would then be extremely unlikely that the Russians would support shooting down a high flying plane which, because of its altitude , trajectory and speed was clearly a passenger plane: -there appears to be no strategic advantage to the Russians to shoot down the plane, and very unlikely that its trained operators would have identified the plane as a fighter/bomber or transport plane. Additionally if there were Russian operatives there, they would have been informed of all planes coming through Eastern Ukraine from Russian airspace
- While the U.S. and its Western allies have repeatedly claimed that Russia is providing troops and equipment to the pro-separatist, they have not been able to produce any evidence that will actually confirm this- which is surprising given the undoubtedly huge amount of Western satellite surveillance occurring on the Russian/Ukrainian borders.
- The Ukrainians 10 years previously shot down a Russian plane in error during a military exercise
- An unlikely, but still possible scenario of right-wing Kiev agents (within the department of Internal Affairs in the Kiev government ) mistaking flight MH17 for President Putin’s flight home from the BRICS summit in Brazil
- Even less plausible, but still possible, are reports from the ground at the time of two fighter aircraft trailing and then shooting down MH17
- The U.S. government has actively and immediately used the MH17 shoot-down as a rationale to further pressure EU members to increase their sanctions against Russia before any evidence has been analysed and responsibilities for the shoot-down factually established.
- The image here of the hole near the cockpit might seem to indicate a smaller missile than the BUK- so if that was the case, likely an air to air missile or ,as has been suggested by the Russians with additional 30mm anti-tank bullets fired from a Ukrainian SU25 fighter aircraft ( The Russian RT new network reports that Russia had tracked two SU25s trailing the airliner)
Western media and the US government appear far too quick to attribute blame to the Russians and accuse the rebels of hiding evidence: a claim totally unsupported by OSCE observers –before any evidence is available either way. There are multiple other possible causes of the crash, including a bomb on board (Malaysian Airlines disgruntled ex-employee?), equipment malfunction, Western intelligence operatives hostile to Malaysia’s independent stance on Western war crimes, Kiev Government false-flag operation, Right Sektor neo-nazi activists acting independently from Kiev’s Preseident Poroshenko?-the list goes on and on Whether a dreadful accident or vicious attack, why then is the Western media and UK and US governments so quick to attribute the blame to the “demonic” Vladimir Putin -an unlikely culprit at best. I wonder…..
Postscript
If the map below is correct, the location of the 50 km wide crash site provides an ideal buffer zone between the two separatist Eastern Ukraine areas; especially if they are policed by armed Western police/army units as has been proposed… qui bono?
It would appear that the Kiev government military are doing their best (as of30th July) to ensure that OSCE observers and crash analysts do not get immediate access to the crash-site by increasing shelling and military assaults in the area
An interesting take on the shoot-down from Anderwelt Online (Google translation from German) , whose analysis of the plane’s fragments posted online to date, suggest a shoot-down by 30mm bullets and possibly air-to air missile. See this also noted at Investment Watchblog
A screenshot (below) from a video of the crash-site by a Canadian/Ukrainian OSCE observer
See the video here at CBC Malaysia Airlines MH17: Michael Bociurkiw talks about being first at the crash site. This clearly is machine gun fire .Possibly by those who came on the scene first but unlikely-very high calbre bullets (30mm?)
Ex-“senior US Intelligence officials” are querying the U.S. State Department’s rush to judgement on MH17
Links
FINAL – Part II: Evidence Continues to Emerge #MH17 Is a False Flag Operation http://slavyangrad.wordpress.com/2014/07/18/breaking-part-ii-evidence-continues-to-emerge-mh17-is-a-false-flag-operation/
It was Putin’s Missile!
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/CEN-01-190714.html
Flight MH17 Down Over Ukraine http://landdestroyer.blogspot.co.nz/2014/07/flight-mh17-down-over-ukraine.html
What Happened to the Malaysian Airliner?
http://www.activistpost.com/2014/07/what-happened-to-malaysian-airliner.html#!biP639
Kerry’s Latest Reckless Rush to Judgement-Common Dreams
https://www.commondreams.org/view/2014/07/21-5
What Did U.S. Satellites see in Ukraine?
http://consortiumnews.com/2014/07/20/what-did-us-spy-satellites-see-in-ukraine/
http://www.mid.ru/bdomp//brp_4.nsf/english/ECD62987D4816CA344257D1D00251C76
Malaysian Airlines MH370 and MH17.
A Criminologist Questions: What are the Probabilities? Is it a Mere Coincidence?
http://www.globalresearch.ca/malaysian-airlines-mh370-and-mh17-a-criminologist-questions-what-are-the-probabilities-is-it-a-mere-coincidence/5392265
Ukraine: No “Western” Interest In Investigating MH17
http://www.moonofalabama.org/2014/07/ukraine-no-interest-in-investigating-mh17.html
Media Bias Frames Western Reporting On Ukraine
http://cips.uottawa.ca/media-bias-frames-western-reporting-on-ukraine/
New Antarctica 