The downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 on 17 July 2014 in Ukraine, and the tragic loss of 298 lives, led to a lengthy forensic and criminal investigation.

Eurojust was involved in the investigation from the beginning and funded the multi-national joint investigation team (JIT) between the Netherlands, Australia, Ukraine, Belgium and Malaysia. Four coordination meetings were held at Eurojust, bringing together prosecutors, judicial experts and representatives from all the affected countries to be informed about the investigation and to discuss strategies and judicial procedures in countries with widely diverging legal systems.

On 13 June 2019 a meeting with representatives of grieving nations was held at Eurojust, where practical issues were discussed, including assistance in the prosecution and the rights of the next of kin. The conclusions of this meeting were disclosed at a press conference  held by the JIT in the Netherlands on 19 June 2019. For further information, see as well JITMH17.com