Pro-Russian fighter, with MH17 attack ties, released by Kyiv court

Volodymyr Tsemakh, a pro-Russian fighter who is a
suspected witness to the 2014 attack on the Flight MH17 airliner, was released
on his own recognizance by the Kyiv Appellate Court in a Sept. 5 ruling. The
court ruling, which can’t be appealed, requires Tsemakh during the next 60 days
of pre-trial investigation to appear before investigators, prosecutors and the
court when called; to not leave the population center where he resides without
permission from investigators, prosecutors or the court; and inform the court
of changes in his residence or work.

Tsemakh was captured in the Russian-occupied Donetsk
region on June 27 by Ukrainian law enforcement officers and transferred to
Kyiv, the BBC Ukraine news agency reported on July 4. He was immediately placed
under arrest, with prosecutors stating he could be a witness in the Malaysian
Airlines MH17 attack, which killed 283 passengers and 15 crew members. Flight
MH17 included 196 Dutch nationals, traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. At
the time of the attack, Tsemakh led the anti-air defense for the pro-Russian
fighters in the region, the pravda.com.ua news site said. In a video published
on the news site, Tsemakh acknowledges “rescuing” a fellow fighter
and “hiding” something.

“Now Mr. Tsemakh himself will be responsible for the
life of Mr. Tsemakh,” said a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office, Oleh
Peresada, as reported by the pravda.com.ua news site. He added, “There may be a
threat since quite a bit of attention has been given to Mr. Tsemakh, especially
in the context of the investigation of the Malaysian Airlines Boing. As
mentioned in court, he is an important element of establishing truth in this
case. And we know that our northern neighbor behaves quite harshly with
individuals dangerous to itself.”

Tsemakh is among the list of political and war
prisoners currently being discussed for exchange between Russian and Ukrainian
leaders, the Interfax news agency reported on Sept. 5, citing an informed
source. The same day in Vladivostok, Russian President Putin met with Viktor
Medvedchuk, his close confidante in Ukraine and member of Ukraine’s parliament,
to inform him that a major exchange of prisoners between the two countries will
soon be announced. Addressing the Eastern Economic Forum that day, Putin said,
“It was quite complicated to decide on certain people.” He added that the
exchange will be “quite large, large-scaled, and this would already be a good
step forward towards normalization.”

In reaction to Tsemakh’s release, Dutch Foreign
Minister Stef Blok said the recent developments “raise many questions,” without
offering details. He said he is in close contact with Ukrainian authorities.
The same day, attack investigators said they wanted to question Tsemakh, which
now will be complicated to do with his release, the radiosvoboda.org news site
reported.