The announcement on Wednesday by Iran of the payment of 150,000 dollars to each of the families of the 176 victims of the crash of a Ukrainian airliner, shot down
"by mistake"
over Tehran, was criticized by Kiev, which claimed first the conclusions of the investigation.
Also: Boeing 737 Max makes commercial flight to United States for first time since 2019
The Iranian armed forces had admitted on January 11 to have shot down
"by mistake"
three days earlier the Boeing operating a Ukraine International Airlines flight between Tehran and Kiev shortly after takeoff, killing 176 people on board the aircraft.
"The cabinet approved the provision of 150,000 dollars or the equivalent in euros (to be paid) for the families and survivors of each of the victims of the Ukrainian plane crash as soon as possible"
, announced on Wednesday the Iranian presidency, according to the Irna agency.
"This compensation does not prevent the prosecution of the criminal aspect of the case before the competent judicial authority"
, she added.
"Establishing the causes of the tragedy and bringing to justice those responsible for it must be an important prerequisite"
, reacted a spokesman for Ukrainian diplomacy, Oleg Nykolenko.
"The situation is particularly unacceptable as we are discussing the fate of innocent people
," he added to AFP.
Ukrainian diplomacy said they were still waiting for
"a draft technical report"
on the circumstances of the accident.
Earlier this Wednesday, Iranian Minister of Transport and Urban Development Mohammad Eslami had indicated that
“the final report”
of the crash would
“soon” be
made available to the public
“in Persian and English”
.
"The owner of the plane, Ukraine, and Boeing were present for the investigation,"
he said, according to Irna.
The crash resulted in the deaths of passengers and crew, mostly Iranians and Canadians, many of them binational.
Discussions on financial compensation
A Ukrainian delegation visited Tehran in October for a new round of talks on financial compensation from Iran for the crash.
Iranian Foreign Affairs then indicated that the negotiations had focused in particular on
"compensation for families and the airline"
.
In July, Kiev had said it hoped for the greatest possible financial compensation in order to alleviate
"the pain and mourning"
of the relatives of the victims.
Canada, which lost 55 nationals and 30 permanent residents in the accident, reaffirmed in October its commitment to
"work tirelessly so that the families of the victims can get the answers they deserve"
.
Read also: Boeing shot down in Iran: Canada demands answers from Tehran
On the day of the crash, Iran's air defenses were on high alert for fear of a US attack.
Iran expected a response from Washington after attacking a base used by the US military in Iraq, in response to the elimination of General Qassem Soleimani, architect of Iran's regional strategy.
The Iranian Civil Aviation Authority claimed that the improper adjustment of an anti-aircraft unit radar was the main
"human error"
behind the disaster.
