You're reading: Russia trying to distract attention from Malaysian plane crash by intensifying actions of militants in Donbas

The Russian side is trying to distract the international community's attention from the tragedy with the Malaysian passenger airliner in Donetsk region by increasing its military presence on the border with Ukraine, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Ihor Kabanenko has said.

“Today Russia is actively trying to distract the international
community’s attention from the event with the aircraft by intensifying
the actions of militants, increasing hybrid war scenarios and pulling
troops to the border with Ukraine,” he said at a meeting with Chairman
of the Group of the European People’s Party in the European Parliament
Manfred Weber.

He said that robberies, killing of civilians, hostage-taking and
violence were a common picture on the area controlled by militants.

“The final straw in this picture began was the cases of looting
recorded at the Malaysian airliner crash site, as well as hindering the
work of international experts who worked at the plane crash site,” the
Defense Ministry’s press service quoted Kabanenko as saying on
Wednesday, July 23.