Russians blamed for missile that shot down jet

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — The Russian military was the source of a missile that shot down a civilian airliner over Ukraine four years ago, killing all 298 people aboard, prosecutors in the Netherlands said Thursday in a finding certain to sour relations between Russia and the West.

The stark determination by prosecutors, supported by video and photographic evidence, set the stage for a diplomatic standoff over how those responsible should be punished. It also increases the likelihood that prosecutors will hand down indictments of Russian military officers and soldiers, setting up a new confrontation with the Russian government.

The prospect of yet another stare-down with Moscow arrives at a moment when the West’s relations are already deeply strained. Scores of Russian diplomats were expelled from Western nations in recent months over accusations that Moscow poisoned a former spy on British soil. Anger has mounted over Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its fomenting of rebellion in eastern Ukraine. And investigations have grown over its meddling in Western elections.

The Russian government has denied any role in shooting down the Boeing airliner. But it is improbable that anyone other than a senior Russian military commander could have ordered the sophisticated anti-aircraft system deployed to Ukraine.