Barack Obama
Here is what we know so far. Evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile that was launched from an area that is controlled by Russian-backed separatists inside of Ukraine.
We know that this is not the first time a plane has been shot down in eastern Ukraine. Over the last several weeks, Russian-backed separatists have shot down a Ukrainian transport plane and a Ukrainian fighter jet.
Moreover, we know that these separatists have received a steady flow of support from Russia. This includes arms and training. It includes heavy weapons. And it includes anti-aircraft weapons.
When asked directly how much Russian president Vladimir Putin should be blamed for the disaster, Mr Obama again directly linked the capabilities of the separatists in Ukraine's east with support from Russia.
We don't know exactly what happened yet, and I don't want to ... get out ahead of the facts. But what I do know ... is that we have seen a ticking up of violence in eastern Ukraine despite the efforts of the Ukrainian government to abide by a ceasefire and to reach out and agree to negotiations, including with the separatists. That has been rebuffed by these separatists. We know that they [the separatists] are heavily armed and they are trained, and we know that's not an accident.
That is happening because of Russian support. So it is not possible for these separatists to function the way they're functioning, to have the equipment that they have - set aside what's happened with respect to the Malaysian Airlines [flight] - a group of separatists can't shoot down military transport planes or, [as] they claim, shoot down fighter jets without sophisticated equipment and sophisticated training, and that is coming from Russia.
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