Page 8 - ARUBA TODAY

A8 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 18 July 2019
Relatives of victims mark 5th anniversary of MH17 downing

By MIKE CORDER were Dutch; the others
Associated Press came from a variety of
VIJFHUIZEN, Netherlands countries, including Malay-
(AP) — With songs, speech- sia, Australia, Canada, Brit-
es and solemn silence, ain and Belgium.
relatives and friends on In the five years since the
Wednesday commemorat- plane was shot down, a
ed the 298 passengers and Dutch crash investigation
crew killed five years ago ruled that a Buk surface-
when a missile blew Ma- to-air missile brought down
laysia Airlines Flight 17 out the Boeing 777.
of the sky above war-torn A separate criminal investi-
eastern Ukraine. gation concluded that the
Central to the memorial ser- missile system was trucked
vice at a Dutch monument into Ukraine from Russia.
to the MH17 disaster was Last month, a Joint Investi-
the reading of the names gation Team made up of
of all those who died when detectives from the Neth-
a Buk missile shattered the erlands, Malaysia, Austra-
Boeing 777, which was lia, Ukraine and Belgium
heading from Amsterdam said it will prosecute four
to Kuala Lumpur in Malay- suspects, in their absence
sia, as it passed over east- if necessary, at a trial set to
ern Ukraine on July 17, 2014. In this Thursday, July 17, 2014 file photo, people walk amongst the debris at the crash site of a pas- start in March.
It took nearly a half hour for senger plane near the village of Grabove, Ukraine. The suspects are three Rus-
family and friends — some Associated Press sians with links to their coun-
choking back tears — to try's intelligence services
read out the names and Beaujean travels each year she said. "And for me it is so happened at a monu- and a Ukrainian who led a
ages of the victims. from her home in Brisbane important to come back to ment surrounded by trees, separatist combat region in
"Miss you sis," said Monika to be at the annual memo- try to fly with one wing, and one planted for each vic- Ukraine's Donetsk region.
Beaujean, as she read out rial services. I'm hoping that I can do tim, close to Schiphol Air- They are charged with in-
the name of her twin sister, "She's my twin sister, and that one day." port, where the passengers volvement in the murder
Gaby Lauschet from Syd- when that happened I The service, attended by boarded the flight. of all those who lost their
ney, Australia. thought I'm losing a wing," more than 1,000 people, Nearly 200 of the victims lives.q

Germany: leader of Merkel party takes over defense ministry

By GEIR MOULSON insisted in recent days that after 5½ years as defense
Associated Press she would continue to con- minister suggests that the
BERLIN (AP) — The new centrate on the party, but post can be a springboard
leader of Chancellor An- has now changed tack to promotion, it has left
gela Merkel's party took abruptly. most recent occupants as
over Germany's defense Merkel says she won't seek diminished figures in do-
ministry on Wednesday in a a fifth term as chancellor. mestic politics. Von der
risky but potentially reward- It isn't yet clear who will run Leyen herself was long con-
ing move, reversing her as the CDU's candidate for sidered a potential succes-
previous insistence that she chancellor in Germany's sor to Merkel but faded out
wouldn't join the Cabinet. next election, which is due of contention while at the
Annegret Kramp-Karren- in 2021 but could come defense ministry.
bauer succeeded Ursula earlier if her fractious coali- An ambitious younger
von der Leyen, who was tion with the struggling cen- conservative who also ran
elected Tuesday as the ter-left Social Democrats in last year's CDU leader-
new head of the European collapses. ship election, Health Minis-
Commission. The defense ministry offers ter Jens Spahn, had been
Kramp-Karrenbauer nar- Kramp-Karrenbauer, 56, considered favorite to be-
rowly won the leadership of who has served as gover- come defense minister.
Merkel's center-right Chris- nor of Saarland state but Kramp-Karrenbauer's move
tian Democratic Union in not in the federal govern- to take the job avoids giv-
December. She has con- ment, a chance to gain ing a potential rival more
centrated so far on trying foreign and security policy exposure.
to renew the party, among experience. Kramp-Karrenbauer didn't
other things seeking to heal But it also is notoriously dif- address the reasons for her
divisions with conservatives ficult to run, with concerns choice in brief remarks to
who were irked by Merkel's From right, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, new elected including the poor state reporters at the defense
welcoming approach to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and An- of the German military's ministry, and took no ques-
negret Kramp-Karrenbauer, von der Leyen's successor as Ger-
migrants in 2015 and other man Defense Minister, attend an office over ceremony at the equipment and managing tions. She said she was tak-
moves. Bellevue Palace in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, July 17, 2019. a transition from conscrip- ing on the job "with great
However, she has seen her Associated Press tion to a professional force. respect, whole-heartedly
poll ratings drop sharply fol- While von der Leyen's un- and full of conviction," and
lowing several gaffes, and profile given that she lacks also wasn't in the Cabinet. expected elevation to the is "very much looking for-
has struggled to raise her a seat in parliament and Kramp-Karrenbauer had European Union's top job ward to this task."q