European monitors reached the MH17 crash site for the first time in about a week after previous attempts to reach the wreckage were thwarted by violence in eastern Ukraine.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said it used a new route to access the MH17 crash site. They were joined by a team of Dutch and Australian experts, who are at the site to collect data and investigate the crash of the Malaysia Airlines, which Ukraine and western intelligence sources claim was shot down by pro-Russia separatists using a Russian-made surface-to-air missile. Moscow has denied any involvement in the shooting down of MH17 and blamed Kiev for creating hostilities that led to the crash of MH17.

Once OSCE monitors and the team of Dutch and Australian experts made it to the crash site, they got out of their vehicles and observed a moment of silence for the victims of MH17.

About 300 people were killed on the Amsterdam-to-Kuala Lumpur flight, a large majority of which were Dutch nationals. The arrival of the monitors came exactly two weeks after the flight crashed.

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