MH17: Malaysia will not rest until justice is done, says Anifah

He said the international community owed it to the victims' families and loved ones to ensure that those responsible for this heinous crime be swiftly brought to justice.

"It would be totally unacceptable for the families and loved ones of the victims to experience the unimaginable pain of losing their loved ones, only to learn that the perpetrators might not be held to account, due to our inaction," he said at the UNSC meeting on Ukraine.

The international community, he said, needs to cooperate fully to establish accountability for the perpetrators of this crime.

The minister strongly reiterated the importance of transparency, impartiality and thoroughness in the conduct of the investigation to ensure that the truth would prevail.

Flight MH17 crashed in eastern Ukraine on July 17 as it flew from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur with 283 passengers and 15 crew on board.

The Boeing 777-200 aircraft was believed to have been shot down.

Anifah also informed the meeting that Malaysi had secured renewed commitment and assurances from the governments of Ukraine and Russia to assist in facilitating safe passage to the wreckage area.

"We hope that such assurances could be translated into concrete action as soon as possible," he said at today's meeting which was also attended by his counterparts from Australia (Julie Bishop), Netherlands (Frans Timmerman), United Kingdom (Phillip Hammond) and Luxembourg (Jean Asselborn).

In welcoming the preliminary report of the independent international investigation team led by the Dutch Safety Board which was released last week, Anifah said: "Crucial questions remain unanswered including; who was responsible for the downing the aircraft? What exactly happened when communication between MH17 and ATC stopped abruptly at 13.20 hours on 17 July 2014?

The Dutch report, among others, confirmed that the aircraft was flying in unrestricted airspace, was following its route and was flying at the altitude as prescribed by Air Traffic Control (ATC) authorities.

The report also concluded that the aircraft was hit by a large number of high-energy objects that pierced the aircraft from the outside, causing the aircraft to disintegrate in the air.

It confirmed that the aircraft was in an airworthy condition at departure and there was no indication of any technical problems or actions by the crew that could have contributed to the crash.

Anifah cautioned the meeting that time was of the essence and the approaching winter could severely hamper recovery and investigation efforts.

He said reports indicated that the present situation on the ground (crash site) remained fragile and this regard, Malaysia urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint to prevent further escalation of the conflict.

Anifah said in Malaysia's view, a sustained ceasefire, particularly in Eastern Ukraine was crucial so as to enable a full, thorough and independent international investigation into the incident as demanded by United Nations Security Council resolution 2166.

Malaysia, he said, also reiterated its call on all parties to respect the ceasefire agreement and spare no effort to work towards a sustainable peace.

The Malaysian minister informed the Security Council that to date 225 out of a total 298 victims have been identified.

Of the 43 Malaysian victims, 40 had been identified and that the remains of 35 of them have been repatriated to Malaysia.

He told the meeting that Malaysia was very clear on its priorities in the immediate aftermath of the downing of MH17.