WASHINGTON — There will be “incredible repercussions” if it turns out that Russian forces or pro-Russian separatists shot down the Malaysian jetliner, Sen. John McCain warned Thursday.
“If it is the result of either separatist or Russian actions mistakenly believing that this is a Ukrainian warplane, I think there’s going to be hell to pay and there should be,” the Arizona Republican said on MSNBC.
He added that “there will be incredible repercussions if this is the case.”
News of the crash of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 reverberated through Washington just as House members were casting their final votes for the week and President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden were campaigning away from Washington.
Lawmakers said the incident would only worsen tensions in war-torn Ukraine.
“It heightens it even more given [that the passengers] are civilians and the loss of life is substantial,” said Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Queens/Bronx). “It makes a sad situation worse.”
Rep. Mike Rogers, chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, warned it would be more difficult to achieve peace in Ukraine if it turns out Russia had a role in downing the airliner.
“If the Russians were involved, this does not portend well for the conflict,” the Michigan Republican said.
Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he expects briefings into the weekend to determine “how and why it occurred” and whether terrorism was part of it.
If it is the result of either separatist or Russian actions mistakenly believing that this is a Ukrainian warplane, I think there’s going to be hell to pay and there should be.
- Sen. John McCain
“It’s always concerning if something like [this] occurs,” the Maryland lawmaker said.
In Wilmington, Delaware, Obama opened a speech on the economy by saying the downed jet “looks like it may be a terrible tragedy.”
Later, en route to fundraisers in Manhattan, Obama from Air Force One called President Petro Poroshenko of Ukraine and Malaysia Prime Minister Mohd Najib Tun Razak.
At a press conference, the Malaysian leader said Obama had urged that an international team have full access to the crash site and no one should “interfere with the area or move any debris including the black box.”
Biden said in Detroit that the United States would send an investigative team to Ukraine.
Poroshenko accepted the assistance in the aftermath of the “tragic event that’s taken place on the Ukrainian border,” he said.
In the absence of details, politicians expressed shock and sadness for the 298 passengers and crew who perished.
Homeland Security Committee member Peter King (R-LI) called the incident a “tragedy.”
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) said “many innocents were killed today. It is horrifying, and we await the facts.”